Department for Transport

Traffic Management Act 2004

Justin Tomlinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will commence Part 6 of the Traffic Management Act 2004.

Jesse Norman: The Government has no plans to commence provisions in Part 6 of the Traffic Management Act 2004 relating to moving traffic enforcement powers. Other provisions relating to civil parking enforcement have already been commenced.

Blue Badge Scheme

Alex Chalk: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he has received representations on the need for clarification of his Department's guidance on Blue Badge holders to avoid any possible confusion for local authorities and badge holders that may arise about where the badge holders can park; and if he will take steps to ensure that the guidance on such badge holders is as clear as possible.

Jesse Norman: The Department receives occasional enquiries about disabled parking. Our publication “The Blue Badge scheme: rights and responsibilities in England” gives advice on where Blue Badge holders can park. This publication is also provided to new badge holders upon receiving their Blue Badge.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Antoinette Sandbach: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the timetable is for the introduction of the urban compensation scheme for Phase 1 of High Speed Two.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: A scheme to provide compensation for those suffering from severe and prolonged disturbance from the construction of HS2 is in development. More details about this scheme will be provided in due course but will be well in advance of the start of major construction works, anticipated to be mid - 2019.

Railways: Rural Areas

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to encourage the re-opening of rural railway lines and halts.

Joseph Johnson: The Government is working with local authorities and other partners to identify the best new rail projects that can unlock new housing and economic growth, ease overcrowding, meet future demand and offer good value for money. It is also helping them to identify new ways of designing, financing and funding additional rail capacity. We will consider proposals on a case by case basis, based on the economic benefits and business case put forward by local partners.

Taxis: Wales

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions he has had with Welsh Government ministers on cross-border issues in the taxi and private hire industry.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: Officials from the UK and Welsh Governments are in regular contact on a range of issues. The Welsh Government has recently consulted on proposed changes to the licensing of taxi and private hire vehicles and once a response is issued an informed discussion of any cross-border implications issues can be held. There have been no recent Ministerial discussions between the Department for Transport and the Welsh Government regarding regulation of this sector, but I will be happy to engage fully with Welsh minsters on these issues.

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

Solar Power

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the effect of the downward trend in UK solar development on the solar industry's supply chain in the UK.

Claire Perry: Solar deployment has increased rapidly since 2010 and there is now over 12.5GW of solar capacity installed in the UK, enough to power over 2.7 million homes. Technology costs have fallen dramatically making solar cheaper than ever before to install, with subsidy-free solar farm proposals now being announced by industry. Impact assessments [1, 2] were published as a result of the closure of the Renewables Obligation to new solar projects and as part of the Periodic Review of the Feed-in-Tariffs. The potential effects on the UK’s solar PV supply chain were assessed as a result of these policy changes.1. DECC. 2015. Government response on changes to financial support for solar PV projects at 5MW and below under the Renewables Obligation: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/486093/2015-12-15_-_5MW_solar_RO_closure_Government_Response_IA_CLEARED_CLEAN_FINAL.pdf.2. DECC. 2015. Periodic Review of FITs: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/486084/IA_-_FITs_consultation_response_with_Annexes_-_FINAL_SIGNED.pdf

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy: Capita

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many contracts his Department holds with Capita; and what the total value of those contracts is.

Richard Harrington: BEIS holds 8 live contracts with Capita Business Services Limited with a total value of £8.5m.

Incinerators: Carbon Emissions

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how much fossil fuel co2e is reported to the United Nations Framework Commission on Climate Change as emitted for each tonne of municipal waste incinerated by the UK.

Claire Perry: No fossil fuel CO2e is reported to the UNFCCC for municipal waste incineration – combustion of coal, oil and natural gas is reported in the energy sector. However, 0.3508 tonnes CO2 equivalent (t CO2e) is reported to the UNFCCC as emitted for each tonne of municipal waste combusted in Energy from Waste installations in the UK. This includes 0.3378 t CO2 from the incineration of waste that derives from fossil sources, e.g. plastics. These figures are according to the April 2017 publication of UK Greenhouse Gas Inventory, 1990 to 2015: Annual Report for submission under the Framework Convention on Climate Change. Source: Energy Background Data, available from: http://naei.beis.gov.uk/reports/reports?report_id=929

Carbon Emissions: North Cornwall

Scott Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether his Department plans to make funding available for the delivery of the Government’s clean growth strategy to homes and businesses in North Cornwall constituency.

Claire Perry: I would like to start by recognising the role your constituency and especially Wadebridge, have long played in delivering innovation and strong community focus on low carbon initiatives. This has been achieved with the support of funding from UK Government through Innovate UK and the Rural Community Energy Fund as well as over £78m Local Growth funding and over £115m through the European Regional Development Fund. Cornwall has also agreed a Devolution deal with Government which has a strong focus on energy and low carbon support.These funding streams on the whole remain active and open until 2020 and are available for Low Carbon activity across the County of Cornwall. It remains for the most part the role of the Local Authority and the Local Enterprise Partnership to determine the priority projects and locations for their area.In the Clean Growth Strategy we announced the launch of the Local Energy Programme, which has already made available funding for a local energy strategy for Cornwall to help plan future low carbon projects and additional funding for capacity support to help local areas deliver their priority low carbon projects at scale.

Home Energy and Lifestyle Management: Lanark and Hamilton East

Angela Crawley: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many photovoltaics installations through Green Deal plans provided by Home Energy Lifestyle Management Systems were undertaken in Lanark and Hamilton East constituency.

Angela Crawley: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many photovoltaics installations through Green Deal plans provided by Home Energy Lifestyle Management Systems were undertaken in Rutherglen and Hamilton West constituency.

Claire Perry: Since the start of the Green Deal in 2013, the following number of homes received photovoltaics through Green Deal plans provided by Home Energy Lifestyle Management Systems in the constituencies requested: Lanark and Hamilton East30Rutherglen and Hamilton West227

Visual Impairment: Older People

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will meet with eye research charities to discuss addressing age-related sight loss within the proposed Health Advanced Research Programme as part of the Government's work on the ageing society.

Mr Sam Gyimah: The Health Advanced Research Programme (HARP), as articulated in Sir John Bell’s Life Sciences Industrial Strategy, proposes that industry, charities, NHS and Government collaborate on ambitious and long-term projects targeted at global healthcare challenges, using tech to transform healthcare in the future and drive UK economic growth. HARP is a proposal in development at this stage, and eye research charities are welcome to write to me and request a meeting to discuss their views on this, and the Government’s work on an ageing society.

Fracking

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, with reference to the Written Ministerial Statement of 25 January 2018, on Energy Policy, HCWS#428, what criteria he will use to assess the financial resilience of (a) Third Energy UK Gas Limited and (b) other companies proposing to carry out hydraulic fracturing operations in England.

Claire Perry: As set out in the Written Ministerial Statement of 25 January, the Secretary of State has asked the Infrastructure and Projects Authority for an assessment of the financial resilience of the company and will respond further in due course as appropriate.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Ethiopia: Peace Negotiations

Thangam Debbonaire: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps the Government is taking to help bring about a peaceful resolution to the recent unrest in Ethiopia.

Harriett Baldwin: The British Government is concerned by recent clashes along the internal border between Somali Regional State and Oromia, especially where this has led to loss of life, displacement, or delayed the delivery of humanitarian assistance in response to drought. In recent bilateral dialogues with the Ethiopian Government, we have reinforced the need for all actors to resolve grievances peacefully rather than through violence, and for all security forces to exercise restraint. We continue to monitor the situation closely.

Afghanistan: Human Rights

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps the Government will take to promote human rights in Afghanistan once the UK has left the (a) EU and (b) EU+ Local strategy.

Mark Field: The UK supports the protection and improvement of human rights in Afghanistan through a number of bilateral and multilateral channels. We work with the National Unity Government, NGOs, and civil society in Afghanistan, as well as with the EU and international partners to support civil society, freedom of expression and the rights of women. The UK's commitment to the promotion of human rights in Afghanistan will continue after we have left the EU.

Egypt: Religious Freedom

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent representations he has made to the Government of Egypt on the persecution of Christians and other minority faiths in Egypt.

Alistair Burt: ​We are concerned about terrorist attacks in Egypt that have targeted the Coptic community and about reports of sectarian violence. Following the attacks last year, the Prime Minister, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Maidenhead, wrote to the President of Egypt to express her deep condolences and reiterate the UK's support for Egypt in its fight against terrorism. Combating sectarian violence is a shared strategic objective for the Egyptian and UK Governments and we welcome President Sisi's calls for peaceful coexistence between communities. The Egyptian Constitution contains protection for Freedom of Religious Belief. It is important that these rights are respected.

Turkey: Human Rights

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with President Erdogan on ensuring protection for the rights of Kurds and Christians in Turkey.

Sir Alan Duncan: ​We take a strong interest in the situation of minority groups in Turkey and encourage the Turkish authorities to safeguard their welfare and fundamental human rights. We have raised human rights issues regularly with Turkey at the highest levels, including in recent discussions between the Prime Minister and President Erdogan.

Syria: Armed Conflict

Christine Jardine: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has made to his counterpart in Turkey on the recent airstrikes on Afrin.

Sir Alan Duncan: ​The Foreign Secretary has been in contact with Turkish Foreign Minister Çavuşoğlu about the Turkish operation in Afrin. We recognise Turkey's legitimate interest in the security of its borders. We have urged them to avoid any escalation in violence and to seek to protect civilians.

Turkey: Arms Trade

Christine Jardine: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will stop arms sales to Turkey following the airstrikes against Afrin.

Sir Alan Duncan: ​Arms exports to Turkey, as to all other countries, are subject to export controls. Decisions are based on the most up-to-date information and analysis available, including reports from our overseas network and military contacts. Applications are considered on a case-by-case basis against the Consolidated EU and National Arms Export Licensing Criteria, known as the Consolidated Criteria. The Consolidated Criteria provide a thorough risk assessment framework and require us to consider the impact of providing equipment and its capabilities. We do not issue export licences where, for example, we assess there is a clear risk that the goods might be used for internal repression or used aggressively against another country. We keep our approach to all countries under continual review and continue to follow closely the latest developments in Afrin.

Syria: Armed Conflict

Chris Stephens: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether the Government has made representations to the government of Turkey on the aerial and land attacks on Afrin and northern Syria.

Sir Alan Duncan: ​The Foreign Secretary has been in contact withTurkish Foreign Minister Çavuşoğlu about the Turkish operation in Afrin and northern Syria. We recognise Turkey's legitimate interest in the security of its borders. We have urged them to avoid any escalation in violence and to seek to protect civilians.

Isa Qassim

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether he has made representations to the Government of Bahrain on the house arrest and revocation of citizenship of prominent Shiite cleric, Sheikh Isa Qassim; and if he will make a statement.

Alistair Burt: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the British Embassy in Bahrain continue to monitor events there closely. The UK has concerns about the revocation of nationality where it renders a person stateless, and we have raised this at a senior level with the Government of Bahrain.The Government of Bahrain have issued public statements that Sheikh Isa Qassim is not under house arrest.

Syria

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how much was allocated to Syria under the (a) Conflict, Stability and Security Fund and (b) Conflict Pool in 2016-2017.

Alistair Burt: The Conflict, Stability and Security Fund (CSSF) replaced the Conflict Pool in 2015. The total spend for the Syria CSSF in 2016 – 2017 was £64.75 million.

Embassies: Correspondence

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assistance his Department can provide to Members of Parliament who do not receive responses to letters sent to foreign embassies in the UK.

Sir Alan Duncan: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has no authority over other countries' embassies in London in respect of their correspondence with UK MPs. Occasionally the FCO is asked to assist by forwarding a MP's letter to the embassy concerned.

Yemen: Armed Conflict

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many reports into investigations of civilian casualties in Yemen he has received from the Saudi Arabia Joint Incidents Assessment Team in each of the last six months.

Alistair Burt: ​The Joint Incidents Assessment Team issued 15 reports in September and a further 5 in November, bringing the total number of reports it has issued to 41. The British Government welcomes the release of these reports which demonstrate the Saudi-led Coalition's continued willingness to conduct thorough, transparent and conclusive investigations into reports of alleged violations of International Humanitarian Law.

Northern Ireland Office

Religion: Northern Ireland

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, pursuant to the Answer of 8 January 2018 to Question 120791, for what reasons that answer does not refer to meetings with any of the leaders of the four main churches in Northern Ireland.

Mr Shailesh Vara: NIO Ministers will be meeting faith leaders in due course as part of our wide range of engagement activity. This Government will continue to work with all sections of the community in Northern Ireland in efforts to re-establish the fully functioning, inclusive devolved administration that works for everyone.

Northern Ireland Government

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, pursuant to the Answer of 8 January 2018 to Question 120790, what the timescale is for the publication of the consultation on legacy issues in Northern Ireland.

Karen Bradley: Since my appointment as Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, I have been deeply moved by the stories I’ve heard about the suffering that victims and survivors of the Troubles have experienced. The UK Government has a duty to move forward on this important issue so that victims and survivors are able to get the progress they have been seeking for such a long time. The Government wants to consult soon, with the aim of building support and confidence in the new legacy institutions from across the community. The best way to do that is off the back of an Executive being formed, but if that does not prove possible we do need to make progress.

Marriage: Northern Ireland

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, pursuant to the Answer of 9 January 2018 to Question 120800, if she will take steps to meet with the (a) Northern Ireland Equality Commission and (b) Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission to discuss the recognition of same-sex marriages in Northern Ireland.

Mr Shailesh Vara: The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland intends to meet the Northern Ireland Equality Commission and Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission, subject to diary commitments.

Northern Ireland Assembly: Pay

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, pursuant to the Answer of 15 January 2018 to Question 121859, what the timescale is for the implementation of the recommendations of the Reaney review of the salaries and staff allowances of members of the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Karen Bradley: As I told the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee on 31 January, I am considering Trevor Reaney’s advice carefully and will update the House when I have made my decision.

BBC Northern Ireland: Equal Pay

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, pursuant to the Answer of 15 January 2018 to Question 121860, if she will make representations to the Northern Ireland Equality Commission on ensuring equal pay for BBC employees in Northern Ireland.

Mr Shailesh Vara: The Secretary of State intends to meet with the Equality Commission, diary commitments permitting, at which time she would be happy to discuss these issues.

Historical Institutional Abuse Inquiry

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what assessment has she made of the implications for her Department of the recommendations in the report of the Historical Institutional Abuse Inquiry.

Mr Shailesh Vara: The Historical Institutional Abuse Inquiry was established by the Northern Ireland Executive, and Sir Anthony Hart’s report was provided to the Northern Ireland Executive. The responsibility for implementing the recommendations remains a devolved matter.It remains our overriding priority to see devolution restored, so that a new Executive can take decisions on a range of strategic issues, such as a response to Sir Anthony’s report, in the interests of the whole community.

Economic Situation: Northern Ireland

Mr Ian Liddell-Grainger: What recent assessment she has made of the strength of the Northern Ireland economy.

Mr Shailesh Vara: The fundamentals of the Northern Ireland economy remain strong. Economic output is up over the year, exports have risen, unemployment has fallen to levels not seen since before the Great Recession of 2008, and 55,000 more people are in work compared to 2010. Ultimately, though, a key requirement for stronger growth is political stability. That is why it is essential that we see devolution restored.

Terrorism: Northern Ireland

Mr Laurence Robertson: What recent discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Justice on ensuring that people in England who were victims of terrorism perpetrated by paramilitary groups based in Northern Ireland are able to access legal aid.

Karen Bradley: First and foremost I would like to extend my deepest condolences to all those across the UK who have been affected by appalling and devastating acts of terrorism, including those affected by the Hyde Park atrocity.As my honourable friend knows legal aid decisions are made independently of Government, but I am sure he, like me, very much welcomes the excellent news that the Legal Aid Agency has just decided to award legal aid to the Hyde Park families in their pursuit of justice.

Local Growth Deals: Northern Ireland

Vicky Ford: What discussions she has had with Cabinet colleagues on city deals in Northern Ireland.

Mr Shailesh Vara: We have made a clear manifesto commitment to work with a restored Executive and other stakeholders towards a comprehensive and ambitious set of city deals across Northern Ireland.We have announced our intention to open negotiations for a Belfast Region City Deal, and the Secretary of State continues to engage with Cabinet colleagues to progress this vital growth agenda for Northern Ireland.

Department of Health and Social Care

Health Services: Reciprocal Arrangements

Julie Elliott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what progress his Department has made on ensuring the UK remains part of the European Health Insurance Card scheme.

Stephen Barclay: While the United Kingdom remains a member of the European Union, it will continue to respect the rights and honour the obligations attendant upon EU membership. The UK Government appreciates the importance of retaining existing reciprocal healthcare arrangements with the EU and has been clear in the negotiations that it wants to see the existing arrangements continued after the UK leaves the EU. This includes the European Health Insurance Card scheme.

General Practitioners: Migrant Workers

Dr Sarah Wollaston: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the number of non-EU GP registrars who are currently on GP training schemes in England who will not be eligible for indefinite leave to remain when they finish their three-year training.

Steve Brine: Currently there are 719 non-European Economic Area national general practitioner trainees working under a Tier 2 visa. On the completion of training, these trainees would be eligible to apply for indefinite leave to remain if they meet the requirements as set out by UK Visas and Immigration. Eligibility is based on individual circumstance and will be decided by UK Visas and Immigration.

Health Services: Swindon

Justin Tomlinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much money from the public purse has been available for the provision of NHS services in Swindon in each year since 2010.

Stephen Barclay: Information relating to the revenue funding allocations made to Swindon Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) are provided in the following table. Figures are not directly comparable between primary care trusts (PCTs) and CCGs due to changes in geographic cover and commissioning responsibilities. National Health Service BodyYearTotal Revenue Allocation £000’sSwindon PCT12010-11294,545 2011-12315,703 2012-13325,407Swindon CCG22013-14219,930 2014-15228,966 2015-16247,013 2016-17257,364 2017-185293,574 Notes:1As a result of the Health and Social Care Act 2012, Swindon PCT ceased to exist as at 31 March 2013 and the commissioning functions of the PCT passed to various organisations (NHS England became responsible for: primary care contracts, secondary care dental, military health, some public health functions and specialist commissioning contracts).2Swindon CCG allocations from 2013/14 onwards only include Core Allocations.2015/16 CCG allocations include mid-year adjustments.2017/18 allocations are as published in 2016 and do not include any subsequent adjustments.5Swindon CCG became delegated for Primary Care Medical from 1 April 2017, so the Primary Care Medical allocation has been included in the core allocation for 2017/18.

Health Services

Justin Tomlinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to share best practice in providing triage services for patients among hospital trusts.

Stephen Barclay: NHS Improvement, working with NHS England and key stakeholders, have produced a series of publications and learning events supporting trusts to ensure good patient flow in acute care. This includes ‘Good Practice Guide: Focus on Improving Patient Flow’1 and a series of national conferences on patient flow and streaming delivered by Emergency Care Improvement Partnership. NHS England and NHS Improvement are also jointly leading work to ensure that patients are appropriately triaged at their first point of contact with the National Health Service to ensure that they are treated in the most appropriate healthcare setting. This includes primary care streaming for people attending accident and emergency and triage services for patients being referred by their general practitioner for planned hospital care where there are community health services available to provide their treatment. Note: 1https://improvement.nhs.uk/resources/good-practice-guide-focus-on-improving-patient-flow/

Radiotherapy

Julia Lopez: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to widen access to proton radiotherapy for cancer patients in England.

Steve Brine: In April 2012, my Rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State announced that £250 million will be invested to build proton beam therapy facilities at The Christie Hospital in Manchester and University College London Hospitals in London. Building work is well underway on both sites and service planning and development is on schedule to begin treating patients from August 2018 at The Christie and summer 2020 for University College London Hospitals.

Hospital Wards: Children

Julia Lopez: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has plans to ensure that NHS England provides (a) complementary wifi and (b) basic television services in children's hospital wards.

Stephen Barclay: Being in hospital can be traumatic for any patient, but especially so for children. Providing a warm and caring environment, including access to television services, is therefore very important and National Health Service trusts are expected to provide this as a matter of course. Data for 2017 shows that 93% of organisations provide children in hospitals with a range of equipment appropriate to their age, including a bedside TV, radio and telephone. NHS Digital is working to make sure that everyone can access free WiFi in NHS sites in England. NHS WiFi will provide a secure, stable, and reliable WiFi capability, consistent across all NHS settings. It will allow patients and the public to download health apps, browse the internet and access health and care information.

Cancer: Children

Julia Lopez: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has plans to promote volunteering in IBM's World Community Grid to support research into childhood cancers.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The Department promotes active public involvement in research into all conditions, including cancer. The Department does this through its funding of the National Institute of Health Research (NIHR) INVOLVE organisation, which aims to support active public involvement in National Health Service, public health and social care research. Underlining the Department’s commitment to the fight against cancer, NIHR funding for cancer research has risen from £101 million in 2010/11 to £137 million in 2016/17.

Obesity: Children

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made on the effect of the Active Movement programme on levels of childhood obesity.

Steve Brine: No assessment of the Active Movement programme has been made centrally. Physical activity and sport have an important role in maintaining and improving the health and wellbeing of children and young people, irrespective of their weight. They are a key part of the Government’s childhood obesity plan.

Neuroblastoma: Babies

Julia Lopez: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what analysis his Department has undertaken of the (a) cost and (b) effectiveness of mandatory testing of babies at birth for neuroblastoma.

Steve Brine: The United Kingdom National Screening Committee (UK NSC) last reviewed the evidence to screen for neuroblastoma in 2015 and recommended that screening should not be offered. This is because the evidence published at the time of the review was insufficient in terms of quality and volume to accurately answer key questions to introduce screening which included no evidence that a screening test that would only detect cases of neuroblastoma that needed treatment; and no evidence that neuroblastoma screening (at any age) would reduce the number of deaths from neuroblastoma. The UK NSC is due to review the evidence for neuroblastoma in 2019.

NHS: Negligence

Craig Tracey: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he plans to publish the outcome of the consultation on fixed recoverable costs for clinical negligence claims.

Craig Tracey: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he plans to respond to the Lord Justice Jackson review on fixed recoverable costs for clinical negligence claims.

Stephen Barclay: In January 2017 the Department launched a consultation on proposals to fix/limit the costs recoverable by claimant lawyers in lower value clinical negligence cases. The Department published a holding response to the consultation on 25 July 2017, so as to allow the Department time to reflect the recommendations made by the Right Honourable Lord Justice Jackson following his review in to fixed costs, published on 31 July. Lord Justice Jackson’s report includes a recommendation for the Civil Justice Council (CJC) and the Government to set up a working party to develop a new process for clinical negligence initially up to £25,000 alongside a new fixed costs regime. Departmental ministers have agreed with this recommendation, as referenced in the recent Public Accounts Committee 29 November 2017, and the Department is now preparing the final response to the consultation for publication. The publication dates will be decided according to standard Government processes. The CJC are independent of the Department and will publish details of the working party as recommended by Lord Justice Jackson in due course.

Life Expectancy

Mr Stephen Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether the Government has made an assessment of the reasons for the sustained decrease in life expectancy in some areas of the UK since 2011; and if he will make a statement.

Steve Brine: Public Health England reviewed evidence for recent trends in mortality rates and life expectancy and the report can be viewed here:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/health-profile-for-englandIt is not yet clear whether there has been a statistically significant interruption in the long-term increase in life expectancy. The Office for National Statistics is currently investigating if the recent figures represent a significant change in the trend, and if so, what demographic groups are affected.

East Midlands Ambulance Service NHS Trust

Karen Lee: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to reduce the average waiting time of people making emergency telephone calls to the East Midlands Ambulance Service.

Stephen Barclay: The achievement of ambulance response time standards is a matter for the local National Health Service. Following a rigorous and independent evaluation of the clinically-led Ambulance Response Programme, in July 2017 the Department agreed NHS England’s recommendations to implement an improved ambulance performance framework. These changes improve responses to patients and the efficiency and resiliency of the ambulance service in the face of rising demand. All mainland NHS ambulance trusts are now operating against this new framework, and the ambulance service on the Isle of Wight will do so from April 2018. NHS England and NHS Improvement are working closely with the service to assist them to effectively perform against these new requirements, and NHS England will undertake a review of the framework in spring 2018.

NHS: Drugs

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the effect of leaving the EU on access to existing medicines in the NHS.

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union on access to medicines (a) in the event of a no deal Brexit and (b) during a transitionary period.

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what preparations his Department is making for the availability of medicines in the NHS in (a) the event of a no deal Brexit and (b) during a transitionary period.

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the benefits to the UK of remaining in the EU Medicines Agency after the UK has left the EU.

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the benefits to the UK of complying with EU regulation for medicines after the UK has left the EU.

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union on the UK remaining in the EU Medicines Agency and complying with EU regulations for medicines after the UK leaves the EU.

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what representations he has had from the pharmaceutical industry on remaining in the EU Medicines Agency and complying with EU regulations after the UK leaves the EU.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The United Kingdom is fully committed to continuing the close working relationship with our European partners, and as part of the negotiations the Government will discuss with the European Union and Member States how best to continue cooperation in the field of medicines regulation (including with the European Medicines Agency). Our aim is to ensure that patients in the UK and across the EU continue to be able to access the best and most innovative medicines, and be assured that their safety is protected through the strongest regulatory framework and sharing of data. Whatever the outcome of Brexit negotiations, we are clear that our regulatory system that protects the best interests of patients and supports the UK life science industry to go from strength to strength. We are in regular contact with the pharmaceutical industry through the Ministerial and industry co-chaired UK-European Union Life Sciences Steering Group. Outside of this group we have consistent contact with industry and research charities. As a member of the Cabinet, the Secretary of State has regular discussions with all Cabinet colleagues, including on Brexit.

NHS: Drugs

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with the Home Secretary on the effect of the proposed customs checks for medicines entering from the EU after the UK has left the EU.

Steve Brine: My Rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State has regular meetings with the Home Secretary on a range of topics. The United Kingdom’s priority is to negotiate a future customs arrangement that ensures cross-border trade is as frictionless as possible and which, crucially, avoids a hard border – limiting the potential for delays at relevant entry points such as the Channel Tunnel and Dover. Following detailed and extensive work on all the options, the Government has set out the two approaches that most closely meet our objective to protect patients: one is a highly streamlined customs arrangement; the other is a new customs partnership with the European Union. The Government has also started working on our domestic preparations. The Government is on course to having a functioning customs service on ‘Day One’ after our withdrawal from the EU, with suitable plans in place to ensure that supplies of priority goods are maintained.

Mental Health Services: Finance

Kate Hoey: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of ring-fencing clinical commissioning groups' funding for mental health; and if he will make a statement.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The Department does not generally ring-fence budgets within the National Health Service. The Health and Social Care Act 2012 gave clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) the autonomy to make decisions about the health services that best meet the health needs of their population. They do this based on evidence of patient needs locally. The NHS Operational Planning and Contracting Guidance applies to CCGs and sets out specific requirements, including commissioning mental health services that meet the needs of local populations. The mental health investment standard and NHS England Mental Health Dashboard have been introduced to ensure transparency and accountability and influence CCGs and Specialised Commissioning hubs to increase their spend on mental health services by a greater amount than the growth in their programme allocation.

Mental Health Services: Finance

Kate Hoey: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of amending the formula for mental health funding for CCGs to take into greater consideration (a) inequality, (b) deprivation, (c) mental health challenges of different ethnic groups, (d) poverty and (e) population increases; and if he will make a statement.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The Advisory Committee on Resource Allocation (ACRA) provides recommendations and advice on the target, relative geographical distribution of funding for health services in England, given the objectives of the funding formula. It is supported by a Technical Advisory Group and a team of analysts in NHS England. ACRA is an independent, expert committee, comprising mainly of general practitioners, public health experts, National Health Service managers and academics. This group makes recommendations for changes to the weighted capitation formula. The allocation of funding to clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) is informed by the estimation of the relative health needs of local areas, based on a set of funding formulae. The formulae are based on independent academic research and include the factors statistically associated with higher or lower need per head for NHS services. These formulae produce a target allocation, or 'fair share' for each area, based on a complex assessment of factors such as demography, morbidity, deprivation, and the unavoidable cost of providing services in different areas. Once national budgets are set, CCG funding is targeted using a set of 'weighted capitation' formulae which help us estimate health needs in different local areas. As the need for different types of health services varies, there are separate formulae for each of the CCG core responsibilities, specialised services and primary medical care. Within CCG core responsibilities there are separate formulae for general and acute, mental health and maternity services. Allocations based on the formulae have been made until 2020/21.

Rare Diseases: Medical Treatments

Mary Glindon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to develop an additional appraisal process for new rare disease treatments which do not meet the criteria for the NICE Highly Specialised Technology appraisal route.

Steve Brine: The Department has no plans to establish a new assessment process for the evaluation of rare disease treatments that do not meet the criteria for the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) Highly Specialised Technology appraisal route. NICE develops guidance on most new drugs through its technology appraisal programme, and has been able to recommend a number of drugs for rare diseases for routine use on the National Health Service. There is an established topic selection process for the technology appraisal and highly specialised technology evaluation programme that includes a public consultation and is designed to ensure that treatments are only referred for assessment by NICE where its guidance will add value.

NHS: Drugs

Mary Glindon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions his Department has had with NICE on the time taken to issue guidance once a marketing authorisation has been granted.

Steve Brine: Departmental officials regularly meet with officials in the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) to discuss a range of issues, including the timescales for the development of guidance through its technology appraisal (TA) and highly specialised technology (HST) programmes. Wherever possible, NICE aims to publish TA and HST guidance on new drugs and significant licence extensions within a few months of a drug receiving a marketing authorisation. The new arrangements for the assessment and adoption of cancer drugs introduced in July 2016 mean that the NICE appraisal process now starts much earlier for newly referred drugs, with the aim of publishing draft guidance before drugs receive their licence, and then final guidance to be issued within 90 days of that.

Innovative Medicines and Medical Technology Review

Mary Glindon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he plans to publish the criteria to access the accelerated access pathway.

Steve Brine: As set out in the response to the Accelerated Access Response published in November 2017, the pathway will be developed and owned by the newly created Accelerated Access Collaborative (AAC), a partnership between the National Health Service, industry, and clinical and patient representatives. The AAC met for the first time on 31 January and it will be that group’s responsibility to determine the criteria for the pathway. We anticipate that the AAC will publish further details on the process and criteria for the pathway ahead of the pathway opening in April 2018.

Mental Health Services: Children and Young People

Damien Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to (a) improve access to and (b) reduce waiting times for, mental health facilities for children and adolescents.

Jackie Doyle-Price: As set out in Future in Mind, the Government is making available £1.4 billion to 2020/21 to improve access to mental health services for children and young people and to treat 70,000 extra children a year by 2020. The National Health Service is meeting the current waiting times standards relevant to children and young people. Latest information published on 31 January 2018 as part of NHS England’s Five Year Forward View Dashboard reports the following: For early intervention in psychosis (all ages): 50% of people experiencing first episode psychosis should commence a National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE)-recommended package of care within two weeks of referral. In Q1-2 2017-18 - 72.3% of patients started treatment within two weeks (Q1-Q2 2017/18). For eating disorders (for those up to 19 years): by 2020/21, 95% of children and young people experiencing an eating disorder urgent case should commence a NICE-recommended package of care within one week of referral. In Q1-2 2017/18 - 72.1% of urgent cases of children with eating disorders received treatment within one week and 80.6% of routine cases of children with eating disorders received treatment within four weeks. The joint health and education Children and Young People’s Mental Health Green Paper published in December 2017, includes proposals for the trialling of a four week waiting time standard for NHS specialist children and young people’s mental health services. The Government will make over £300 million available, following public consultation, to set up these waiting times pilots, Mental Health Support Teams and the provision of mental health first aid in primary schools.

Mental Health Services: Mothers

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of support available to new mothers with post-natal mental health conditions.

Jackie Doyle-Price: This Government is committed to improving perinatal mental health services for women during pregnancy and in the first postnatal year, so that women are able to access the right care at the right time and close to home. The Department is investing £365 million from 2015/16 to 2020/21 in perinatal mental health services, and NHS England is leading a transformation programme to ensure that by 2020/21 at least 30,000 more women each year are able to access evidence-based specialist mental health care during the perinatal period. This includes access to psychological therapies and specialist community or inpatient care. A key element of the programme is to increase awareness and skills across the workforce, supporting better identification of perinatal mental illness, early intervention and consequently improved recovery rates. In addition, there are over 570 perinatal mental health visitor champions. Their role is to support health visitors with the identification and management of anxiety, mild to moderate depression and other perinatal mental disorders, and knowing when to refer on.

Prescription Drugs: Misuse

Cat Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the proposed membership is for the Steering Group on the forthcoming PHE review on addiction to medicine.

Steve Brine: Public Health England was commissioned on 24 January 2018 to review the evidence for dependence on, and withdrawal from, prescribed medicines. The review will have an expert group to inform its approach, interpret findings and propose recommendations. This expert group has not yet been set up but will be formed of a range of stakeholders including clinical and non-clinical experts and representatives of patient groups. Details on the members of the group will be available in due course.

Social Services

Jeremy Lefroy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when his Department plans to publish its consultation on adult social care.

Caroline Dinenage: The Government has committed to publishing a Green Paper by summer 2018, setting out its proposals for reform. In developing the Green Paper, it is right that we take the time needed to debate the many complex issues and listen to the perspectives of experts and care users, building consensus around reforms which can succeed. This is why we are starting a process of initial engagement over the coming months through which the Government will work with experts, stakeholders and users to shape the long-term reforms that will be proposed in the Green Paper.

General Practitioners: Training

Wera Hobhouse: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps is he taking to ensure that General Practitioners who host medical students on placements receive adequate funding for doing so.

Steve Brine: The Department and Health Education England (HEE) are currently working together to develop a consistent and transparent payment mechanism for placements in primary care settings. Further information around the proposed funding arrangements for 2018-19 will be confirmed in March 2018 as part of the HEE budget setting process.

Department of Health and Social Care: Capita

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many contracts his Department holds with Capita; and what the total value of those contracts is.

Caroline Dinenage: The Department has one contract with Capita taken from the Crown Commercial Services Contingent Labour One Framework. The value of the contract is £45 million. This information is based on data held in the Department’s contract register.

Ambulance Services: Schools

Anna Soubry: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what information his Department holds on the number of times ambulances have been called to schools for suspected cardiac arrests in England in the last five years.

Stephen Barclay: The data requested is not held centrally.

Neurology

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if the Government will widen access to (a) early diagnosis and (b) support services for developmental neurodiverse conditions.

Caroline Dinenage: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave the hon. Member for Birmingham Edgbaston on 31 January 2018 to Question 124459.

Sepsis

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many hospital-borne cases of sepsis have been recorded in each of the last five years.

Caroline Dinenage: Data on the number of hospital-borne cases of sepsis is not collected. Data on the number of Finished Admissions Episodes (FAEs) with a primary or secondary diagnosis of sepsis in each year from 2013/14 to 2016/17 are available in the table below. Sepsis is a devastating condition that we need to get better at spotting across the National Health Service. By raising awareness and improving clinical practice we will save lives in the fight against this horrible illness. Better awareness has led to more cases of sepsis being detected across all age groups. We estimate that our cross system efforts since 2015 have saved over a thousand lives but we know there is more to do and this is why a new action plan was launched in September 2017 to ensure the NHS is on the highest possible alert to tackle this silent killer. Number of FAEs with a primary or secondary diagnosis of sepsis in each year from 2013/14 to 2016/17 2013-142014-152015-162016-17Total103,365121,180146,776172,423Source: Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), NHS Digital Notes: A FAE is the first period of admitted patient care under one consultant within one healthcare provider. FAEs are counted against the year or month in which the admission episode finishes. Admissions do not represent the number of patients, as a person may have more than one admission within the period. The primary diagnosis is the first of up to 20 diagnosis fields in the HES data set and provides the main reason why the patient was admitted to hospital. As well as the primary diagnosis, there are up to 19 secondary diagnosis fields in HES that show other diagnoses relevant to the episode of care.

Mental Health

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to tackle the effects of loneliness on health.

Caroline Dinenage: Loneliness can have a significant impact on physical and mental health. The Department will be working closely to support the Minister for Sport and Civil Society in developing the cross-Government strategy on loneliness. A number of existing Department-supported programmes can help to address loneliness, including dementia friendly communities, Dementia Friends, Improving Access to Psychological Therapies, the Carers Action Plan and social prescribing.

Mental Health

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of guidance to help staff in GP surgeries recognise loneliness in patients.

Caroline Dinenage: The Department and NHS England have not made an assessment of the effectiveness of published guidance to general practitioners around loneliness in patients. The Department will work closely to support the Minister for Sport and Civil Society in developing the cross-government strategy on loneliness. A number of existing Department-supported programmes can help to address loneliness, including dementia friendly communities, Dementia Friends, Improving Access to Psychological Therapies, the Carers Action Plan and social prescribing.

Nurses

Kate Hollern: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the effect of current nursing staffing levels on patient safety.

Caroline Dinenage: Local National Health Service trusts and commissioners have responsibility for ensuring high-quality, safe and financially sustainable services, and are expected to consider a basket of measures to assess whether nursing staffing levels for their organisation are appropriate. At a national level, in July 2016, the National Quality Board issued updated staffing guidance, ‘Supporting NHS providers to deliver the right staff, with the right skills, in the right place at the right time, to support local decision making’, which advises NHS trusts to consider safe staffing levels in the context of this basket of measures. NHS Improvement collects monthly data returns on staffing levels, vacancy, fill rates, agency data and also quality metrics such as patient safety thermometer and safety incidents. This data is reviewed monthly by regional NHS Improvement teams to support NHS objectives. There are triggers and criteria in the data sets that flag NHS trusts which have staffing and safety issues and these are placed on higher surveillance, with regular input via NHS Improvement teams, to ensure safety and quality. The latest statistics for October 2017 show that since May 2010, there are now almost 42,700 more professionally qualified clinical staff (full time equivalent) working in NHS trusts and clinical commissioning groups – this includes over 14,200 (9%) more nurses onwards.

Leeds General Infirmary: Accident and Emergency Departments

Alex Sobel: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what information his Department holds on the average waiting time for A&E patients at Leeds General Infirmary in each year since 2010.

Stephen Barclay: The table below shows the mean and median duration to treatment and duration to departure for accident and emergency at Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, for the financial years between 2010-11 and 2016-17. NHS Digital collects this data at trust level, not at individual hospital site level.  Duration to Treatment (minutes)Duration to Departure (minutes)Financial yearMeanMedianMeanMedian2010-1198.184154.91552011-12102.986158.01562012-13107.289165.81632013-1492.978154.61542014-15101.687165.31662015-16108.593173.81752016-17125.7106194.7185Source: Hospital Episode Statistics; Outpatients, NHS Digital

Cerebral Palsy: Children and Young People

John McNally: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to support the implementation of the NICE Quality Standard on cerebral palsy in children and young people.

Steve Brine: Quality standards (QS) are important in setting out to patients, the public, commissioners and providers what a high quality service should look like in a particular area of care. Whilst providers and commissioners must have regard to the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) QS in planning and delivering services, they do not provide a comprehensive service specification and are not mandatory. The NICE QS: Cerebral palsy in children and young people was published on 10 October 2017. This standard covers the diagnosis, assessment and management of cerebral palsy and comprises four Quality Statements which describe high quality cerebral palsy care that can be used for the measurement and improvement of services locally. These statements are drawn from existing, evidence based guidance; in this case NICE’s cerebral palsy clinical guideline, published in January 2017. Both the QS and guideline can be found at the following links:www.nice.org.uk/guidance/qs162/resources/cerebral-palsy-in-children-and-young-people-pdf-75545597081797 www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng62/resources/cerebral-palsy-in-under-25s-assessment-and-management-pdf-1837570402501

Cerebral Palsy

John McNally: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of introducing a national cerebral palsy register to record incidences of the condition and improve the provision of treatment for people affected.

Steve Brine: No assessment has been made. NHS England is responsible for securing high quality outcomes for people with cerebral palsy, and it has advised that there are currently no plans to establish a national register of children with the condition. PACE, the charity which supports children and families affected by motor disorders such as cerebral palsy indicates that the current United Kingdom incidence rate of cerebral palsy is around one in 400 births and that approximately 1,800 children are diagnosed with cerebral palsy every year.

Continuing Care: Finance

Ian C. Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussion she has had with the Continuing Healthcare Alliance on care package funding arrangements for people with NHS continuing health care funding who had their eligibility for that funding withdrawn are enter the local resolution process.

Caroline Dinenage: The Department is currently working to update the National Framework for NHS Continuing Healthcare (CHC) and National Health Service-funded nursing care. This has included a structured engagement process with partners in NHS England and local government, as well as interested stakeholders, service users and charities on proposed changes to the National Framework. The CHC Alliance were included in this engagement process and raised this particular issue. The update to the National Framework is intended to provide greater clarity for clinical commissioning groups and local authorities on a number of elements of the CHC process. The updated National Framework will be published shortly.

Continuing Care: Finance

Ian C. Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps she is taking to ensure that the new National Framework for NHS Continuing Healthcare and NHS Funded Nursing Care will require Care Commissioning Groups to continue to fund packages of care for people during the appeals process.

Caroline Dinenage: The Department is currently working to update the National Framework for NHS Continuing Healthcare (CHC) and National Health Service-funded nursing care. This has included a structured engagement process with partners in NHS England and local government, as well as interested stakeholders, charities and service users on our proposed changes to the National Framework. This update is intended to provide greater clarity for clinical commissioning groups and local authorities on a number of elements of the CHC process. The updated National Framework will be published shortly.

Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust: Accident and Emergency Departments

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many and what proportion of patients waiting to be handed over to A&E had to wait for longer than 30 minutes in (a) an ambulance, (b) a hospital department other than A&E and (c) in the hospital vicinity at the Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust in the last month for which data is available.

Stephen Barclay: The information is not held in the format requested. NHS England publishes weekly winter situational reports showing the number of ambulances arriving at accident and emergency (A&E) as well as the number of ambulances that experienced a delay of 30 minutes or more on arrival. This is published at a trust and national level and is available at the following link: https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/winter-daily-sitreps/winter-daily-sitrep-2017-18-data/ Data on the number and proportion of patients waiting to be handed over to A&E who had to wait longer than 30 minutes in a hospital department other than A&E or in the hospital vicinity is not collected centrally.

Pregnancy: Mental Health Services

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much his Department has spent on health services for maternal mental health in each of the last five years for which data is available.

Jackie Doyle-Price: This Government is committed to improving perinatal mental health services for women during pregnancy and in the first postnatal year, so that women are able to access the right care at the right time and close to home. The Department is investing £365 million from 2015/16 to 2020/21 in perinatal mental health services, and NHS England is leading a transformation programme to ensure that by 2020/21 at least 30,000 more women each year are able to access evidence-based specialist mental health care during the perinatal period. This includes access to psychological therapies and specialist community or inpatient care. NHS England does not collect spend on perinatal mental health services for clinical commissioning groups so data is not available in the format requested.

Department of Health and Social Care: Buildings

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Answer of 14 December 2015 to Question 20000, on Department of Health: Buildings, what refurbishments have been carried out by (a) his Department, (b) his Department’s non-departmental public bodies since January 2016; what the cost of such refurbishments was; what further refurbishments are planned; and what the estimated cost is of such planned refurbishments.

Caroline Dinenage: The following table provides the cost of refurbishments carried out by the Department and its non-departmental public bodies since January 2016 as well as estimated costs for any currently planned refurbishments.  Department of Health and Social CareHealth Education EnglandNational Institute for Health and Care ExcellenceNHS ImprovementSince January 2016£16,614,650£316,544£208,266£275,000Estimated costs of future refurbishments£7,000,000£100,000No works currently planned£205,000  Care Quality CommissionHuman Fertilisation and Embryology AuthorityHuman Tissue AuthorityNHS EnglandNHS DigitalHealth Research AuthoritySince January 2016£1,167,334Nil£58,412£2,580,000£3,761,977£225,000Estimated costs of future refurbishments£260,000No works currently plannedNo works currently planned£570,000£1,160,000No works currently planned

Department of Health and Social Care: Child Care Vouchers

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many employees of his Department make use of the childcare voucher scheme.

Caroline Dinenage: 140 employees use the Department’s childcare voucher scheme as of 31 January 2018.

Southport and Ormskirk Hospital NHS Trust: Hospital Beds

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the bed capacity is at Southport and Ormskirk NHS Trust; what estimate he has made of the proportion of beds which were unused at that trust during winter 2017-18; and what the reasons were for those beds being unused.

Stephen Barclay: NHS England publishes weekly winter situational reports showing the number of beds available as well as the number and proportion of those that are occupied. This is published at both a national and a trust level. The current reporting period for which data is available is 20 November 2017 to 28 January 2018. Over this period, at Southport and Ormskirk NHS Trust, there was an average of 397 general and acute beds open per day. Of these, 376 (94.7%) were occupied. Bed availability and occupancy is managed at a local level. Hospitals have a responsibility in ensuring that they are operating with the necessary beds available to support with patient flow and safety.

Southport and Ormskirk Hospital NHS Trust: Surgery

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the maximum operating theatre capacity is at Southport and Ormskirk NHS Trust; for how many hours per day theatres are used at that trust; and for what reasons operations are cancelled whilst theatre time remains unused at that trust.

Stephen Barclay: This information is not collected centrally. Southport and Ormskirk NHS Trust is actively working to minimise the number of operations cancelled on the day as part of a programme of work led by NHS Improvement to support trusts to improve their productivity by reducing late starts and early finishes of scheduled and staffed operating lists.

Health: Parks

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the value of recommending the use of public parks for improving healthcare outcomes.

Steve Brine: In June 2017, Public Health England published their Spatial Planning for Health evidence resource which includes a review of the evidence on using spatial planning principles to reduce health inequalities by improving access to green space. This can be found:https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/625568/Spatial_planning_for_health_an_evidence_resource.pdf

Nurses: Training

Heidi Allen: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he plans to take to increase funding for continuous professional development funding for nurses in the NHS.

Stephen Barclay: Different organisations have a range of responsibilities for training and development. Individual employers have responsibility for supporting staff with courses which are required to fulfil duties to work in their organisation and core employment requirements. National funding through Health Education England (HEE) has historically been used to support development of the National Health Service workforce. HEE invests up to £300 million per year on supporting individuals in NHS employment achieve registered qualifications and a further £80 million on workforce transformation projects agreed locally, some of which has prioritised training courses for ongoing development. HEE is considering alternative models for traditional continual professional development funding; for example, exploring routes for apprenticeships for post graduate qualifications that previously may have been funded directly at a national level.

Department of Health and Social Care: Land

Jack Lopresti: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much land (a) his Department, (b) its agencies and (c) its non-departmental public bodies owns in (i) England and (ii) the South West; and how much of that land has been identified as being surplus to requirements.

Caroline Dinenage: The United Kingdom Government is a significant landowner. The current Government Estate Strategy sets out the Government's vision to create an efficient, fit-for-purpose and sustainable estate whose performance matches the best of the private sector. As a Government we are delivering this vision, ensuring that the estate is fit for purpose, is frequently reviewed and aligned to the Estate Strategy, and is managed in an efficient and effective way. The current landholdings of the Department, its agencies and non-departmental public bodies are shown in the table below. This does not include land previously identified as surplus that has now been disposed. The information is correct at time of publication, based on available data. OrganisationEngland – in hectaresSouth West – land in hectaresDepartment of Health and Social Care9.20.3Agencies: Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency; Public Health England9.52.3Non-departmental public bodies: NHS Digital; NHS Business Services Authority; NHS Blood and Transplant6.12.2Total24.84.8 Of the total land the Department holds in England owns, 2.9 hectares are currently surplus, out of which 0.4 hectares are in the South West. These figures include agencies and non-departmental public bodies.

Restraint Techniques: Children

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of requiring children’s trusts to record data on use of physical restraint.

Jackie Doyle-Price: Data on physical restraint of children and young people who are in contact with Mental Health, Learning Disabilities or Autism Spectrum Disorder Services is recorded by National Health Service trusts in the Mental Health Services Dataset.

NHS England

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when NHS England plans to publish planning guidance for 2018-19.

Stephen Barclay: NHS England and NHS Improvement jointly published updated planning guidance for 2018/19 on Friday 2 February 2018. This is available here: https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/refreshing-nhs-plans-for-2018-19/

Advisory Committee on Resource Allocation

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 16 January 2018 to Question 123159, how is mental health expertise adequately represented across the disciplines involved on the Advisory Committee on Resource Allocation.

Steve Brine: The Advisory Committee on Resource Allocation covers a range of technical expertise, and has experience of a range of service areas, including mental health services. NHS England do not maintain a detailed up-to-date audit of members’ skills and experiences. At least two-thirds of the committee have some professional experience of mental health services, as an academic, a health analyst, a National Health Service manager, a commissioner, or a clinician. Where necessary, NHS England draws on its expertise to ensure the Advisory Committee has access to the knowledge, skills and expertise it needs.

Department for International Development

Yemen: Armed Conflict

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her Department is taking to improve the effectiveness of the UN Verification and Inspection Mechanism for Yemen.

Alistair Burt: The UK is providing £1.3 million to the UN’s Verification and Inspection Mechanism (UNVIM) this financial year (2017/18) to facilitate commercial shipping into Yemen’s Red Sea ports and provide assurances against weapons smuggling. We have seconded UK experts to UNVIM in Djibouti to increase the number of inspections of commercial vessels. Yemen imports 90% of its food and fuel, so it is essential that the Red Sea ports of Hodeidah and Saleef remain fully open to commercial and humanitarian imports to help the millions of people who don’t have enough to eat. We continue to call on all parties to the conflict in Yemen to allow full and unhindered commercial and humanitarian access for food, fuel and medical supplies throughout Yemen.

Department for Education

Schools: Staff

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate her Department has made of the number of full time equivalent (a) pastoral care workers (b) counsellors (c) mentors and (d) educational psychologists working in (i) primary and (ii) secondary schools in England since 2010.

Nadhim Zahawi: An error has been identified in the written answer given on 18 December 2017.The correct answer should have been:

The full-time equivalent (FTE) number of contracted staff whose role is defined as that of ‘pastoral support’ or of ‘learning mentor’, employed by state funded primary and state funded secondary schools in England, November 2010 to 2016 is provided in the table attached.Information for ‘educational psychologists’ is not available by phase. These figures may also undercount the actual number of educational psychologists in England and do not provide a comparable national year-on-year series because it is based on a varying percentage of local councils returns in each year (between 68 and 74 per cent). Data is not available for ‘counsellors’.   


The full-time number of contracted staff
(Word Document, 23.02 KB)




Number of contracted staff
(Word Document, 25.53 KB)

Mr Robert Goodwill: The full-time equivalent (FTE) number of contracted staff whose role is defined as that of ‘pastoral support’ or of ‘learning mentor’, employed by state funded primary and state funded secondary schools in England, November 2010 to 2016 is provided in the table attached.Information for ‘educational psychologists’ is not available by phase. These figures may also undercount the actual number of educational psychologists in England and do not provide a comparable national year-on-year series because it is based on a varying percentage of local councils returns in each year (between 68 and 74 per cent). Data is not available for ‘counsellors’.   


The full-time number of contracted staff
(Word Document, 23.02 KB)




Number of contracted staff
(Word Document, 25.53 KB)

Educational Psychology

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many educational psychologists were employed in all local authorities in 2017.

Nadhim Zahawi: An error has been identified in the written answer given on 30 January 2018.The correct answer should have been:

Figures for educational psychologists in service in all local authorities in 2017 are not available until Summer 2018.The attached table provides the number of Educational Psychologists (EPs) that were reported as being directly employed by each local authority in November 2016. The list excludes local authorities where EP provision has been outsourced or the provision has been shared with other local authorities. It would also be open to academies and free schools to obtain their own provision. 


Number of Educational Psychologists 
(Excel SpreadSheet, 25.7 KB)

Nadhim Zahawi: Figures for educational psychologists in service in all local authorities in 2017 are not available until Summer 2018.The attached table provides the number of Educational Psychologists (EPs) that were reported as being directly employed by each local authority in November 2016. The list excludes local authorities where EP provision has been outsourced or the provision has been shared with other local authorities. It would also be open to academies and free schools to obtain their own provision. 


Number of Educational Psychologists 
(Excel SpreadSheet, 25.7 KB)

Schools: Sports

Justin Tomlinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department is taking to provide guidance on how the sport premium can be used in schools.

Nadhim Zahawi: The department published revised guidance for schools on the use of the physical education and sport premium in October 2017. This revised guidance can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/pe-and-sport-premium-for-primary-schools.

Higher Education: Exports

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate his Department has made of the financial value of higher education as an export in each of the last five years.

Mr Sam Gyimah: The table below shows the estimated total value of UK education-related exports and transnational education activity for the last five years with available data. Estimates for 2015 will be published in February 2018. UK revenue from education related exports and repatriated income from transnational education activities, 2010 to 2014, current prices. 20102011201220132014£15.8 billion£16.8 billion£17.3 billion£17.9 billion£18.7 billion Source: DfE Research Report, July 2017, UK revenue from education related exports and transnational education activity 2010-2014. Estimates reflect both direct revenue e.g. tuition fees and living expenditure.

Higher Education: Exports

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how the Government intends to meet its 2020 target to increase higher education as an export.

Mr Sam Gyimah: The target of increasing the value of education exports (including higher education (HE)) to £30 billion, by 2020, was set in 2015 under the previous government. The target is rightly ambitious and the Department for Education remains committed to working with the rest of the government and the sector to driving progress towards achieving it. This government continues to support growth in UK education exports. This includes the work of the team dedicated to education exports in the Department for International Trade (DIT) and through the DIT Education Sector Advisory Group, which held its inaugural meeting in December last year and aims to support the education sector’s export aspirations. In addition, the government actively promotes study in the UK through the GREAT Campaign and through the British Council, which promotes the UK in over 100 countries. The UK is a world-leading destination for study, with four universities in the world’s top 10 and 16 in the top 100 – second only to the USA. We are highly competitive in the global mobile student market, again second only to the USA in terms of our market share. Numbers of non-EU international students remain at record highs, with over 170,000 non-EU entrants to UK HE institutions for the seventh year running.

Pupils: Exercise

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the effect of the Active Movement programme on exam results in participating schools.

Nadhim Zahawi: The government recognises the value of physical activity for pupils. Schools have the freedom to decide which programmes they wish to adopt to suit their pupils. Active Movement Limited is a private company and the department has not made any assessment of the programme on exam achievement levels.

Business: Education

Adam Afriyie: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to increase entrepreneurship and business education in schools.

Nick Gibb: Schools are free to cover enterprise and entrepreneurship within their personal, social, health and economic education.The Government’s careers strategy, published in December 2017, aims to give young people from all backgrounds the opportunity to learn from employers about work and the skills that are valued in the workplace: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/careers-strategy-making-the-most-of-everyones-skills-and-talents. Statutory guidance sets out further details about the ambition that every school should offer every young person at least seven encounters with employers, including those who are self-employed, during their education as part of a high quality careers programme: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/careers-guidance-provision-for-young-people-in-schools. The Careers & Enterprise Company’s network of Enterprise Advisers will support the delivery of this ambition. Enterprise Advisers are senior business volunteers who help schools to work with local businesses.

Pre-school Education: North East

Mr Stephen Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of the level of nursery school funding for nurseries in (a) Jarrow constituency, (b) South Tyneside, and (c) the North East.

Nadhim Zahawi: Maintained nursery schools make a valuable contribution to improving the lives of some of our most disadvantaged children, and as is the case for all early years providers, it is for local authorities to decide the rate of funding that they receive. Our supplementary funding of approximately £60 million a year enables local authorities to protect maintained nursery school funding until 2019-20. Budgets after 2019-20 will be set at the next Spending Review.We continue to work closely with the sector to find the best long-term solution for maintained nursery schools.

Special Educational Needs: Cornwall

Steve Double: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department has taken to improve support for children in Cornwall with special educational and disability needs.

Nadhim Zahawi: The Children and Families Act 2014 provided significant support for children and young people with special educational needs, putting individuals and their families at the heart of the process. The transition period ‎between the old and new systems will end in March 2018. We have put in place inspection arrangements to support local improvement, and ensure that services work effectively to identify and meet the individual’s needs. In July 2017, Ofsted and the Care Quality Commission conducted a joint inspection of the local area of Cornwall. Their report highlights many areas of good practice and a number of areas for development.The department has provided local authorities with £252 million between 2014-15 and 2017-18 to support local authorities to embed the special educational needs and disability reforms as set out in the Children and Families Act 2014.

Headteachers

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what his Department’s strategy is on increasing the number of people who seek to become head teachers.

Nick Gibb: The Department supports a range of programmes designed to bolster the leadership pipeline. Our recently reformed suite of national professional qualifications help better prepare leaders for the range of roles in today’s school system through from middle leadership to headship and beyond. The Department also funds targeted programmes that aim to boost leadership capacity in challenging schools such as the High Potential Senior Leaders and High Potential Middle Leaders programmes. The second round of the £75 million Teaching and Leadership Innovation Fund opened on 31 January 2018 and seeks to build leadership capacity in the schools and areas that need it most. The Department is also committed to supporting more teachers with protected characteristics into leadership through the Leadership Equality and Diversity Fund and Women Leading in Education networks and coaching pledge.

Schools: Governing Bodies

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans he has to bring forward legislative proposals to ensure that school governing boards produce publicly accessible minutes of their meetings.

Nadhim Zahawi: The School Governance (Roles, Procedures and Allowances Regulations (2013)) sets out the requirement for the governing bodies of maintained schools to make their minutes available for inspection to any interested person. The current model articles of association for academies require the same of them. We are satisfied that these requirements help to ensure that there is transparency and public accountability about governing body meetings for all schools and have no plans for additional legislation in this area.

Foster Care

Dr Sarah Wollaston: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many children have been fostered in England in each of the last five years.

Dr Sarah Wollaston: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many special guardianship orders have been issued in each of the last five years.

Nadhim Zahawi: The numbers of children looked after in foster placements at any time during the year ending 31 March in each of the last five years were published in Table B1, in the statistical release Children looked after in England including adoption: 2016 to 2017 at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/children-looked-after-in-england-including-adoption-2016-to-2017.The numbers of children, who ceased to be looked after because of a special guardianship order during the year ending 31 March in each of the last five years, are shown in the attached table. 



Number of children who ceased to be looked after 
(Word Document, 13.84 KB)

Primary Education: Admissions

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of primary school starting age on (a) intellectual development, (b) social mobility and (c) results in (i) GCSE and (ii) A-level examinations.

Nick Gibb: Compulsory school age in England is five, although the School Admissions Code requires admission authorities to provide for the admission of all children from the September following their fourth birthday, which is when the majority of children begin school. Since all children in England generally start school at around the same age, it is not possible to compare them with another group of children receiving the same education but who started school at a different age, to assess what impact school starting age may have.Evidence shows that early education has a beneficial impact on attainment in English and mathematics and that high-quality early education may help close the attainment gap between advantaged and disadvantaged children at the start of primary school. (https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/455670/RB455_Effective_pre-school_primary_and_secondary_education_project.pdf.pdf).

Children: Day Care

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Education,  whether he has made an assessment of the level of accessibility of childcare for disabled children.

Nadhim Zahawi: The government is committed to promoting equality and inclusion for children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). Local authorities and providers must ensure that they meet their duties under the Equality Act 2010 and take full account of the SEND Code of Practice 0-25 when securing and providing free places.The early implementation of 30 hours showed that local areas that had put in place measures to support the participation of SEND children were successful in delivering extended places to children with additional needs, including those with very complex needs.We have put in place a range of measures to support local areas. Our National Funding Formula includes an additional needs factor which directs more funding to local authorities with more need. Our our Disability Access Fund, worth £615 per child, and the requirement that local authorities establish a SEN Inclusion Fund, will help to ensure children with SEND children can access and get the best from the free childcare entitlements.

Children: Day Care

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assistance his Department has made available to Camden Council for expanding the number of free childcare places.

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assistance his Department has made available to Brent Council for expanding the number of free childcare places.

Nadhim Zahawi: The department has supported the growth and creation of additional places to deliver the 30 hours entitlement and in 2016 ran a £100 million early years capital bid round, for which local authorities, in partnership with providers, were invited to submit bids. The department announced that over 350 projects across 123 local authorities were successful in this bid round. Brent being one of the local authorities who received capital funding. We have also provided significant support to local authorities and providers through our delivery contractor, ‘Childcare Works’, and in November 2017 we launched the Delivery Support Fund to support local authorities and enable them to support their providers. ‘Childcare Works’ regularly contact all Local authorities to assess sufficiency and readiness for 30 hours childcare and are providing a programme of tailored and universal support for councils, to help progress implementation plans, including Camden and Brent. Currently, Camden and Brent have reported no sufficiency issues for the spring term.

Care Leavers: Bus Services

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of providing care leavers aged between 18 and 25 with free bus passes to help them find and maintain work.

Nadhim Zahawi: The cross-government care leaver strategy ‘Keep on Caring’, published in July 2016, set out how we will support care leavers to make a successful transition from care to independence. Through the Children and Social Work Act, we are; introducing corporate parenting principles that will govern the way in which local authorities deliver services to children in care and care leavers; introducing a new duty on local authorities to consult on and publish a ‘local offer’ for care leavers; and extending support from a Personal Adviser to all care leavers to age 25. We believe, however, that central government departments, other public bodies and private and voluntary sector organisations also have a role to play in helping care leavers to make a successful transition to adulthood; and we are developing a ‘care leaver covenant’ which will provide a way for organisations from all sectors to make a commitment to offer support to care leavers. We recognise that many care leavers struggle to cope with the financial challenges of living independently at a young age and that support to meet transport costs would help care leavers to engage in education, employment and training. In developing the care leaver covenant, we will explore with the Department of Transport and private bus and rail companies the scope to secure free or discounted travel for care leavers.

Education: Disadvantaged

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he is taking to promote incentivised learning to improve the prospects of young people from economically disadvantaged backgrounds.

Anne Milton: In the current academic year, the government is allocating over £500 million of funding for institutions to provide extra support for disadvantaged 16 to 19 year olds. This is to enable colleges, schools and other providers to support, attract and retain disadvantaged 16 to 19 year olds and to support students with special educational needs and disabilities. In addition, a number of financial support programmes are available for economically disadvantaged 16 to 19 year olds. These help with the education related costs associated with staying in post-16 education such as travel and course equipment; these programmes aim to enable 16 to 19 year olds to participate whatever their financial situation.

Members: Correspondence

Bill Esterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether he plans to answer the letter of 12 June 2017 from the hon. Member for Sefton Central on school funding in the Sefton Central constituency.

Nick Gibb: A reply was sent to the hon. Member for Sefton Central (Bill Esterson) on 23 June 2017.

Free Schools: Greater Manchester

Lucy Powell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the budgets of the (a) Collective Spirit Free School in Oldham and (b) Manchester Creative Studio in each year since those academies were established.

Nadhim Zahawi: We remain committed to an ambitious free schools programme that delivers choice, innovation and higher standards for parents. Schools which are new or growing may be funded on the basis of the pupils which the school estimate will be on roll within the same academic year. A reconciliation is carried out later in the academic year to match against the pupil numbers recorded in the October census. This is to ensure new and growing schools receive adequate funding for period which they are expanding year groups. Both Manchester Creative Studio and Collective Spirit Free School were funded on the basis of the trust’s estimates since established. Capital budgets of all free schools, including University Technical Colleges and studio schools, are allocated on a case by case basis and will consider the specific needs of the school. Costs are controlled very carefully to deliver value for money to the taxpayer. It is the responsibility of academy trusts to manage budgets. The Education Skills and Funding Agency (ESFA) monitors the performance of all trusts at regular intervals including through annual budget forecast returns and intervenes quickly when trusts are in difficulty. The ESFA has worked closely with both trusts to ensure the adequacy of budgets in the run up to closure.

Collective Spirit Multi-Academy Trust

Lucy Powell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will place a copy of the financial investigation carried out by the Education Funding Agency into the Collective Spirit Multi Academy Trust in 2016 in the Library.

Nadhim Zahawi: The Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) does not intend to publish the report. As part of routine business, the ESFA carried out a fact-finding review in August 2016 at Collective Spirit Free School. In accordance with published policy, these routine reports are not released. The published policy can be found on GOV.UK.

Collective Spirit Multi-Academy Trust

Lucy Powell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many and what related party transactions were registered by the Collective Spirit Multi Academy Trust in each year since its foundation.

Nadhim Zahawi: Collective Spirit Multi Academy Trust has registered five related party transactions in its full annual accounts since its foundation in 2013. The full annual accounts are published on the Companies House website at: https://beta.companieshouse.gov.uk/company/08178309/filing-history?page=2. A summary of what the related party transactions are can be found in the table attached.



Party transactions
(Word Document, 22.32 KB)

Free Schools: Greater Manchester

Lucy Powell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many times the Regional Schools Commissioner visited the (a) Collective Spirit Free School in Oldham and (b) the Manchester Creative Studio (i) prior to and (ii) after each of those school's most recent Ofsted inspection.

Nadhim Zahawi: We do not collect central data on the number of individual visits by Regional School Commissioner’s (RSC) and their teams. The RSC works alongside a wider team including Education Advisers and the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) to monitor, support and challenge academies, including Free Schools and Studio Schools. Both Manchester Creative Studio and Collective Spirit have been monitored through regular Education Advisers visits to the schools and visits from the RSC’s team and ESFA. In addition, the RSC held several meetings with Trust Board members to ensure that the appropriate actions were being taken as a result of monitoring visits and following the Ofsted inspections.

Students: Counselling

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what information his Department holds on the number of university students  who have accessed university counselling and well-being services (a) in total and (b) at each university in each year for which figures are available.

Mr Sam Gyimah: As autonomous and independent organisations, it is for higher education institutions (HEIs) to determine what welfare and counselling services they need to provide to their students. Each institution will be best placed to identify the needs of their particular student body, including taking actions in line with any legal responsibilities under the Equality Act 2010. Government does not hold information on the number of students accessing university counselling and wellbeing services. An independent research report in this area was published on 4 September 2017 by the Institute for Public Policy Research, ‘Not by Degrees: Improving student mental health in the UK's universities’ (https://ippr.org/research/publications/not-by-degrees). This report states that: “Our survey reveals that HEIs have – over the past five years – experienced significant increases in demand for (overall) student services… 94 per cent report an increase in demand for counselling services, while 61 per cent report an increase of over 25 per cent”. The department is working closely with Universities UK (UUK) on their ongoing programme of work on mental health in higher education. As part of this, UUK launched their Step Change programme on 4 September 2017, which encourages higher education leaders to adopt mental health as a strategic imperative and implement a whole institution approach. The Children and Young People’s Mental Health Green Paper published on 4 December 2017 outlines government’s plans to set up a new national strategic partnership focused on improving the mental health of 16-25 year olds. This partnership will support and build on the work of UUK and consider the Green Paper’s proposed initiatives to improve the mental wellbeing of students in higher education.

Ministry of Justice

Post-mortems

Dr Sarah Wollaston: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what plans he has to collect centrally data on waiting times for coronial post mortems for (a) adults, (b) children and (c) neonatal deaths.

Dr Phillip Lee: The Ministry of Justice collects data on the number of post mortem examinations commissioned by coroners and this is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/coroners-statistics-2016 We have no plans to collect data on waiting times for coroner post mortems.

Courts: ICT

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether access to justice will be used as a criteria by his Department to assess the performance of (a) PwC and (b) other contractors in the delivery of digital courts reform contracts.

Lucy Frazer: Court reform is designed to improve our courts, which includes people’s ability to access justice. Various suppliers are enabling the department to deliver against our court reform goals, and contractual arrangements are in place to ensure they deliver our requirements.The PwC arrangement does not include any prima facie assessment of performance related to access to justice. There are other performance related measures applied to that contract to enable PwC support the department.

Amey

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the oral evidence given to the Justice Select Committee by Michael Spurr on 24 January 2018, on resetting the prison maintenance contract with Amey, what changes his Department plans to make to the terms of that contract.

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the oral evidence given to the Justice Select Committee by Michael Spurr on 24 January 2018, on resetting the prison maintenance contract with Amey, what changes his Department plans to make to the payments made under that contract.

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the oral evidence given to the Justice Select Committee by Michael Spurr on 24 January 2018, on resetting the prison maintenance contract with Amey, what changes his Department plans to make to Amey's responsibilities under that contract.

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the oral evidence given to the Justice Select Committee by Michael Spurr on 24 January 2018, on resetting the prison maintenance contract with Amey, what changes his Department plans to make to government monitoring of performance under that contract.

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the oral evidence given to the Justice Select Committee by Michael Spurr on 24 January 2018, on resetting the prison maintenance contract with Amey, what changes his Department plans to make to the government oversight of that contract.

Rory Stewart: Our current focus is on securing improvements to the operational delivery of the contracts with Amey including through strengthened contract management and oversight. If any changes to the terms are judged necessary/essential to drive improved operational performance, they will be made in accordance with Regulation 72 of The Public Contracts Regulations 2015.

Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what progress his Department has made on the post-implementation review of the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012.

Lucy Frazer: The Government remains committed to undertaking a post-implementation review on the impact of the changes brought about by LASPO and publishing it later this year.The post-implementation review is an evidence-based assessment of changes brought about by LASPO; this involves analysing evidence and consulting with expert panels and interested parties.

National Probation Service for England and Wales: Pay

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the change in real term pay is for those employed in the National Probation Service since 2010.

Rory Stewart: Our probation staff do a vital and challenging job reforming offenders and protecting the public. The National Probation Service (NPS) was created in June 2014 as part of the wider Probation Reforms. Prior to that date the Probation Service structure was based on 35 local Government Probation Trusts. Since becoming Civil Servants in June 2014, the NPS staff have been in receipt of annual contractual pay awards which align to Government Pay Policy and the 1% spending controls.

Tribunals

Damien Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps his Department is taking to reduce tribunal waiting times.

Lucy Frazer: HM Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) is committed to reducing waiting times across all tribunals wherever possible. Recent initiatives include working with the judiciary to maximise the effectiveness of listing and case management practices as well as the greater use of fee paid judiciary to ensure waiting times are minimised. HMCTS is also working with the judiciary and the Ministry of Justice to recruit additional judges and judicial office holders to provide long-term capacity in the tribunals.

Hunting: Prosecutions

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prosecutions there have been for hunting foxes with hounds in each local authority area in England and Wales in each of the last five years.

Rory Stewart: This information is not held centrally and can only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

Birmingham Prison: Civil Disorder

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 25 January 2018 to Question 123578 on Birmingham Prison: civil disorder, what steps his Department has taken as a result of the findings of that report.

Rory Stewart: Recommendations made in the report for both Her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS) and G4S were accepted, and action plans have been developed to address these. HMPPS continue to monitor these action plans and the delivery and conditions of the contract at Birmingham through the application of robust processes in place to manage privately managed prison contracts. We will not hesitate to take action if and when standards fall short.

Prisoners: Childbirth

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many women in prison gave birth in 2017.

Dr Phillip Lee: The information requested is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Community Rehabilitation Companies

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the total additional projected payments to Community Rehabilitation Companies of £342 million will be spent on.

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what proportion of the additional projected payments to Community Rehabilitation Companies will be spent on staff.

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what guarantees he has received from Community Rehabilitation Companies that the total additional projected payments to Community Rehabilitation Companies of £342 million will not be spent on shareholder dividends.

Rory Stewart: The change to the contractual payment mechanism increased the overall potential value by around £277m for the rest of the contracts’ life. The actual change in total contract value, which could be an increase or a decrease, will depend on future volumes. It is not the case, therefore, that providers are guaranteed additional payments totalling £342m over the life of the contracts. The changes we made to CRC contracts did not require the provision of additional services or staff. Contracts require CRCs to employ a sufficient level of staff and to have a workforce that is competent and adequately trained. CRCs continue to be held robustly to account for the delivery of their contractual obligations and for their performance against a range of service levels, and a proportion of their income is subject to achieving reductions in reoffending. The financial position of each CRC is monitored monthly and we work closely with providers to understand their financial stability. We continue to closely monitor CRCs, including their expenditure, to ensure they prioritise actions to meet their obligations under the contract.

Prisons: Crimes of Violence

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how much was paid from the public purse in compensation to prison staff as a result of injuries suffered in a violent attack on the prison estate in 2015-16.

Rory Stewart: The information requested is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Prisons: Crimes of Violence

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how much was paid from the public purse in compensation to prison staff as a result of injuries suffered in a violent attack on the prison estate in 2010-11.

Rory Stewart: The information requested is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Prison Officers: Working Hours

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prison staff were deployed on detached duty in each month of 2017.

Rory Stewart: The average number of prison staff deployed on DD each month (4 week average) over the last 12 months is shown in the table below. Detached duty is one of the sensible and proportionate measures we take to ensure we run safe and decent regimes in prisons and respond appropriately to any operational issues that arise. MonthAverage number of Officers deployed on DDJan-17126Feb-17117Mar-17105Apr-17127May-1795Jun-1798Jul-17136Aug-17176Sep-17209Oct-17211Nov-17189Dec-17198

Prison Officers: Working Hours

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many days of detached duty were worked by prison staff in 2017.

Rory Stewart: The information requested could only be obtained at disproportionate cost. The deployment of staff between prisons on detached duty is a regular and normal part of prison resourcing. It allows staff to be allocated from prisons with the capacity to provide them, to those where additional staffing is required. Since October 2013, national detached duty has been coordinated centrally. Detached duty is one of the sensible and proportionate measures we take to ensure we run safe and decent regimes in prisons and respond appropriately to any operational issues that arise.

Prison Officers: Working Hours

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many days of detached duty were worked by prison staff in 2010.

Rory Stewart: The information requested could only be obtained at disproportionate cost. The current arrangements to coordinate detached duty nationally started in October 2013. The deployment of staff between prisons on detached duty is a regular and normal part of prison resourcing. It allows staff to be allocated from prisons with the capacity to provide them, to those where additional staffing is required. Detached duty is one of the sensible and proportionate measures we take to ensure we run safe and decent regimes in prisons and respond appropriately to any operational issues that arise.

Courts: ICT

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 26 January 2018 to Question 123660 on Courts: ICT, if he will publish the plans to deliver against the 6 initial work packages.

Lucy Frazer: The HMCTS Reform Delivery Partner contract awarded to PwC has been published on Contracts Finder (https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/20ffccdd-e93a-4e99-bc9a-9093cb983f70) including the deliverables for the 6 initial work packages. However, the plans for delivery have not been published as they are considered to be commercially sensitive. The plans include details of delivery approaches and methods unique to PwC.

Carillion

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 25 January 2018 to Question 123441, on Prisons: Repairs and Maintenance, if he will publish the sections of the independent review referred to in that Answer which relate to Carillion.

Rory Stewart: This document covers all suppliers providing facilities management services to prisons, as such there is not a Carillion specific section. This document is therefore unable to be provided on grounds of commercial sensitivity.

Prisons: Standards

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prisons have been in special measures in each month since 2010.

Rory Stewart: As a result of a proactive performance and assurance framework set up to manage public sector prisons, those identified in need of support are being placed in special measures. This is a relatively new process and the number of prisons subject to special measures has increased gradually as support processes have been developed. The table below shows the of prisons placed in special measures since the process commenced in 2016:NUMBER OF PRISONS IN SPECIAL MEASURE BY MONTHYearMonthNumber of prisons2016September1 October1 November1 December22017January4 February4 March4 April5 May5 June5 July6 August6 September6 October6 November7 December102018January10

National Careers Service

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will publish the assessment his Department has made of the effect on rehabilitation of the cancellation of the work of the National Careers Service in prisons.

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will make an assessment of the potential effect of the decision to cancel the work of the National Careers Service in prisons  on the number of prisoners leaving prison with a job.

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how much his Department has spent on careers services for prisoners in each year since 2010.

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how much his Department plans to spend on careers services for prisoners in each year to 2022.

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many careers advisors have been employed by his Department in each year since 2010.

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many career advisors his Department plans to employ in each year up to 2022.

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many careers advisors have been employed in each prison in England and Wales in each year since 2010.

Rory Stewart: The National Careers Service Contract is held by the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) and is funded by Her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service. The in-custody element was not cancelled: the contract comes to an end on 31 March 2018. In line with the commitment made in the white paper, Prison Safety and Reform, to review each national contract as it comes to an end, it was decided not to extend this contract further. A wide range of factors affect the likelihood of a prisoner entering employment on release. Information, advice and guidance provided by Community Rehabilitation Companies, Department of Work and Pensions Prison Work Coaches and providers of Offender Learning and Skills Services, as well as National Careers Service delivery will have a positive impact on job outcomes post-custody. The Ministry of Justice does not itself employ career advisors in prison. In October 2016, a Machinery of Government change transferred the budget for careers advice from the Department for Education to the Ministry of Justice. Spend prior to that period was controlled by the Department for Education. In 2016-17, £12.9m was spent on the National Careers Service in custody. Spend in 2017-18 is not yet available. The budgets for future financial years have not yet been finalised. We do not hold information on the number of National Careers Service advisors employed in each prison in England and Wales in each year since 2010. In Wales, all these matters are devolved to the Welsh Government.

Courts: Closures

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the estimated return to the public purse will be from the sale of each of the eight courts for which a closure consultation has recently been opened.

Lucy Frazer: HM Courts & Tribunals Service is unable to disclose the estimated return from any sale of buildings currently open for public consultation, should the decision be made to close them, as this is commercially sensitive.

HM Courts and Tribunals Service: Staff

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many staff were employed by HM Courts and Tribunal service in each year since 2010.

Lucy Frazer: The average number of staff employed by HM Courts & Tribunals Service is published each year in our annual report and accounts. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications?departments%5B%5D=hm-courts-and-tribunals-service&publication_type=corporate-reports The published average number of full-time equivalent staff employed in each financial year was: Financial YearPermanently employed staff2016-1714,2692015-1615,2092014-1516,1622013-1416,9992012-1317,5872011-1219,4332010-1120,392

National Probation Service for England and Wales: Pay

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the longest time is that has elapsed between an employee starting work and being paid for the first time for a member of NPS staff.

Rory Stewart: The longest period a new starter went without pay prior to being paid for the first time was 7 weeks. This was in July 2014 which was the transition from Community Rehabilitation Company (CRC) to NPS, and was due to late notification. It is now standard practice for any member of staff who is not paid on payday to receive a same day advance of salary.

Ministry of Justice: Pay

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what proportion of staff have been paid on time since the single operating system was introduced by the Shared Service Centre compared with the average of 12 months before that system was introduced.

Dr Phillip Lee: For the 6-month period from July 2017 to December 2017, when the Ministry of Justice was receiving payroll on the Single Operating Platform (SOP), the percentage of staff paid on time was 99.97%. This figure is for the whole Ministry and includes payroll advances outside of pay day.For the period January 2016 to December 2016 for HM Prison and Probation Service (Pre-SOP) the average proportion of staff paid, including those requiring a payroll advance outside of pay day, was 98.81%.  For the period January 2016 to December 2016 for Ministry of Justice, excluding HMPPS, (Pre-SOP) the average proportion of staff paid, including those requiring a payroll advance outside of pay day was 99.5%.

Ministry of Justice: Procurement

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will publish the research his Department has  conducted on the potential effect of outsourcing the work of Civilian Enforcement Officers.

Lucy Frazer: The Department is unable to provide the information on research conducted on the potential effect of outsourcing work of Civilian Enforcement Officers as disclosure would likely to prejudice the commercial interests of a third party and the department.

Ministry of Justice: Staff

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many National Compliance and Enforcement Service staff have been employed in each year since 2010.

Lucy Frazer: The number of full time equivalent staff (FTE) working in the National Compliance and Enforcement Service at the end of March for each year since 2012 is as follows:2012 1,7062013 1,7702014 1,6402015 1,5162016 1,4702017 1,497The FTE figures include both agency and permanent staff. We do not hold any figures prior to March 2012 as National Compliance and Enforcement Service was not separated from the Court FTE figures.

Sex Offender Treatment Programme

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prisoners have completed a sex offender treatment programme, by course, in each month in each of the last three years.

Rory Stewart: The information requested is set out in the table attached. We keep treatment programmes under constant review to reduce reoffending and protect the public. Over the past two years, we have introduced new programmes for sex offenders which draw on the latest international evidence on effective treatment for this cohort of offenders.



Table
(Excel SpreadSheet, 17.17 KB)

Prisons: Civil Disorder

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice on how many occasions Gold Command was called out to prisons in each month since January 2017; and what the incidents were for which it was called out.

Rory Stewart: The GOLD Command function is dedicated to the task of supporting, resourcing and assisting establishments resolve serious incidents that may have occurred. Gold Command oversight ensures the strategy and tactics of the establishment incident commander (Silver) are in line with HMPPS policy and do not affect the stability of other establishments. The opening of Gold Command can be for a variety of reasons, and not necessarily linked to violence, and has the ability to provide resource that is not available at a local level, for example the strategic supply of extra staffing resource. The Gold Command suite was opened 42 times in 2017 and has opened 3 times to date this year:DATEESTABLISHMENTINCIDENT TYPE 19/01/2017SwalesideIncident at Height4207/02/2017WoodhillIncident at Height07/02/2017FelthamIndustrial Action01/03/2017NationalIndustrial Action10/03/2017RanbyHostage10/03/2017Guys MarshIncident at Height11/03/2017Guys MarshMiscellaneous16/03/2017StockenBarricade23/03/2017RanbyHostage05/04/2017RisleyIndustrial Action10/04/2017HindleyHostage22/05/2017WandsworthHostage07/06/2017LindholmeIndustrial Action26/06/2017WandsworthIncident at Height09/07/2017ErlestokeConcerted Indiscipline11/07/2017ElmleyHostage11/07/2017HumberConcerted Indiscipline11/07/2017FelthamConcerted Indiscipline16/07/2017Swinfen HallBarricade/ CI22/07/2017HewellConcerted indiscipline23/07/2017HewellConcerted indiscipline31/07/2017The MountConcerted Indiscipline01/08/2017The MountConcerted indiscipline08/08/2017Isle of WightIncident at Height18/08/2017SwalesideHostage22/08/2017HaveriggConcerted indiscipline29/08/2017FeatherstoneConcerted indiscipline03/09/2017BirminghamConcerted indiscipline12/09/2017NorwichHostage23/09/2017WinchesterHostage24/09/2017Channings WoodIncident at Height24/09/2017New HallConcerted indiscipline24/09/2017WaylandConcerted indiscipline26/09/2017RanbyHostage04/10/2017LeedsConcerted indiscipline11/10/2017Long LartinConcerted indiscipline30/10/2017NorthumberlandConcerted indiscipline18/11/2017SwalesideHostage22/11/2017Guys MarshBarricade01/12/2017RanbyHostage03/12/2017SwalesideConcerted indiscipline17/12/2017HumberHostage10/01/2018ChelmsfordConcerted indiscipline310/01/2018WoodhillHostage30/01/2018GarthHostage

Prisons: Civil Disorder

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, on how many occasions was the Tornado Team were called out to prisons in each month since January 20167; and what the incidents were that it was called out for.

Rory Stewart: Tornado teams are comprised of prison officers based in prison establishments who are trained to an advanced level of C&R. We have over 2000 trained staff across the country and they are grouped into Tornado teams made up of 12 officers and two commanders (a unit). Between 1/1/17 to date – Tornado teams have been deployed on a total of 23 occasions. In the majority of cases, Tornado teams are deployed as a precaution, and the resolution of the incident is provided by local staff.10/03/2017Guys MarshIncident at height08/04/2017NorthumberlandConcerted Indiscipline11/07/2017HumberConcerted Indiscipline22/07/2017HewellConcerted Indiscipline22/07/2017AylesburyRegime Support23/07/2017AylesburyRegime Support29/07/2017AylesburyRegime Support29/07/2017ErlestokeRegime Support30/07/2017AylesburyRegime Support31/07/2017The MountConcerted Indiscipline01/08/2017The MountConcerted Indiscipline02/08/2017The MountRegime Support03/08/2017The MountRegime Support03/08/2017ErlestokeRegime Support22/08/2017HaveriggConcerted Indiscipline29/08/2017FeatherstoneConcerted Indiscipline30/08/2017FeatherstoneRegime Support14/09/2017Wormwood ScrubsRegime Support04/10/2017LeedsConcerted Indiscipline11/10/2017Long LartinConcerted Indiscipline30/10/2017NorthumberlandConcerted Indiscipline08/11/2017WaylandMiscellaneous03/12/2017SwalesideConcerted Indiscipline Tornado Teams can be deployed for a variety of incidents including Concerted Indiscipline, Regime Support following an incident, Assisting in searching and Incidents at Height

Prisons: Civil Disorder

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, (a) on how many occasions, (b) in which prisons and (c) for what incidents the National Tactical Response Group was called out in each month since January 2017.

Rory Stewart: The National Tactical Response Group (NTRG) provides additional support staff or resources to prisons to help them deal with a variety of incidents. The overwhelming majority of call outs are for non-violent incidents, including where they attended as a precaution and when the situation was resolved locally. NTRG deployments are detailed in the attached appendix.



Appendix
(Word Document, 630 KB)

Ministry of Justice: Pay

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how much money his Department has spent in respect of errors in staff payslips in each year since 2010.

Dr Phillip Lee: Information about how much money the Ministry of Justice has spent in respect of errors in staff pay slips in each year since 2010 is not available as this information is not collected.

Sentencing: Females

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 1 December 2017 to Question 108876, how many women received custodial sentences in 2017; and how many of such people, by offence category as used in his Department's offender management statistics, received a sentence of (a) over 12 months, (b) less than six months, (c) less than three months, (d) less than one month and (e) less than two weeks.

Dr Phillip Lee: This information is not available. Court proceedings data for 2017, including sentencing information, is planned for publication in Spring 2018. We are committed to doing all we can to address the issues around female offending so we can better protect the public and deliver more effective rehabilitation. That is why we plan to set out a strategy for female offenders, to improve outcomes for women in both the community and custody.

Sexual Offences: Trials

Dr Sarah Wollaston: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many applications were made under S41 of the Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act 1999 for (a) sexual assault and (b) rape in each of the last five years.

Lucy Frazer: The information requested is not held centrally. We asked the CPS to analyse a sample of rape cases finalised in 2016 to assess the frequency and outcome of applications to introduce evidence of a complainant’s sexual history under s 41 of the Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act 1999. A section 41 application was made by the defence in 13% of the 309 sample cases looked at. In 8% of the 309 sample cases, an application to permit such evidence was granted by the court. These are not official published statistics. For further details of this study, see our report published in December: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/limiting-the-use-of-complainants-sexual-history-in-sexual-offence-cases

Rape: Trials

Dr Sarah Wollaston: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the criteria are for applications under S41 of the Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act 1999, in cases of rape.

Dr Sarah Wollaston: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the criteria are for applications under S41 of the  Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act 1999, in cases of sexual assault.

Lucy Frazer: The same criteria apply to proceedings in relation to all sexual offences. See page 5 of the report ‘Limiting the use of complainants’ sexual history in sexual offences cases’ available here:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/limiting-the-use-of-complainants-sexual-history-in-sexual-offence-cases

Carillion

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 25 January 2018 to Question 123244, for what reasons the Government does not plan to make public the improvement plan agreed with Carillion.

Rory Stewart: This document covers all suppliers providing facilities management services to prisons, as such there isn’t a Carillion specific section. This document is therefore unable to be provided on grounds of commercial sensitivity.

Ministry of Justice: Contracts

David Hanson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many recorded breaches of contracts between private contractors and his Department there were by (a) site and (b) company in each year since 2010.

David Hanson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many penalties his Department imposed on private sector companies for breaches of contract with his Department by company in each year since 2010.

David Hanson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many contract breach penalties his Department is awaiting payment for; and what the value of those penalties is.

Rory Stewart: The information requested could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

Probation: Privatisation

Alex Norris: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what progress has been made on the completion of the official review into privatisation of the probation service.

Rory Stewart: During 2016 and 2017 we conducted an internal review of the probation system. As a result of this work, Sam Gyimah made a written statement to parliament in July confirming our commitment to improving the delivery of probation services and outlining changes made to Community Rehabilitation Company (CRC) contracts. In November 2017 the Ministry of Justice submitted written evidence to the Justice Committee’s inquiry into Transforming Rehabilitation. In December 2017 the National Audit Office published a report into the changes to CRC contracts in 2017. The Public Accounts Committee heard evidence relating to the conclusions of this review on 17 January 2018. We continue to keep the performance of the probation system under review and are discussing with providers further improvements we might make to the delivery of services.

Aiding and Abetting: Prosecutions

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what information his Department holds on the number of prosecutions for joint enterprise.

Lucy Frazer: Joint enterprise is a term which is used loosely to describe any offence which is committed by two or more people. The Ministry of Justice only collects information on how many defendants are prosecuted and convicted for each offence in any given year. Information is not collated on whether a prosecution or conviction relied on the law of joint enterprise. Such information may be held on court records, but could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

Ministry of Justice: Capita

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether any changes to the contract with Capita for electronic monitoring have been agreed since it was initially signed.

Rory Stewart: Since the current contract was awarded to Capita in February 2014 there have been 43 changes to the MoJ’s Electronic Monitoring contracts with Capita. These Contract Change Notices range from changes in signatory names to improvements in systems and processes. Contract Change Notices are always approved through the appropriate levels of commercial, legal and operational governance.

Ministry of Justice: Capita

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many letters of concern on the delivery of electronic monitoring his Department has sent to Capita.

Rory Stewart: We have interpreted letters of concern to mean a formal letter issued to Capita as a result of a breach of their contract obligations. No such letters have been issued to Capita since the signature of the Capita Electronic Monitoring contract in 2014. If this were to occur, there are robust obligations within the contract. The service provider is obliged to issue a rectification plan in the event of any breaches to the contract terms.

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

Holocaust Memorial Day

John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, which Departments have (a) marked and (b) plans to mark Holocaust Memorial Day 2018.

Mrs Heather Wheeler: In 2018, more departments than ever before held events to commemorate Holocaust Memorial Day. These include:Department for Business, Energy & Industrial StrategyCabinet OfficeMinistry of DefenceDepartment for Digital, Culture, Media and SportDepartment for EducationDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsDepartment for Exiting the European UnionForeign and Commonwealth OfficeHome OfficeDepartment of Health and Social CareMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentDepartment for International DevelopmentDepartment for International TradeMinistry of JusticeNorthern Ireland OfficeDepartment for TransportHM Treasury Officials in all other departments have been invited to attend these events, or given opportunities to view them remotely. A number of non-Ministerial departments have also held events or their staff have been able to attend those held at Ministerial departments; these include (but are not limited to) the Government Legal Department, the Crown Prosecution Service and the Charity Commission.

Land Use

Jack Lopresti: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 30 January 2018 to Question 124559, on Planning Permission, if the he will take steps to (a) produce a register of all land in England and Wales owned by development companies which has neither building work ongoing nor planning permission granted nor approved, (b) make that register public and (c) provide the House with regular updates as to his Department's progress in reducing the amount of land on that register; and if he will make a statement.

Dominic Raab: We have no such plans at present.   Local authorities are already required to publish registers of brownfield land suitable for housing. The registers include information relating to the ownership and planning status of land on the register. Local authorities are also required to publish planning registers containing details of all planning applications which are under consideration or which have been agreed.   In the Autumn Budget 2017, the Government also announced it will develop a central register of residential planning permissions from local authorities to improve information on where permissions are held and progress towards them being built out.   The Government's Housing white Paper sets out a wide ranging approach to driving up build out of planning permissions. In addition, the Autumn Budget 2017 included the announcement of a review of build-out chaired by Rt Hon Oliver Letwin MP. The review will consider the significant gap between housing completions, and the amount of planning permissions and land allocated for housing. The review panel will make recommendations for closing this gap, and will report on its findings in 2018.

Local Government: Video Conferencing

Heidi Allen: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether the Government plans to allow local authorities operating joint committees, parish councils and combined authorities to hold meetings using video conferencing facilities.

Rishi Sunak: The Government consulted last year on a proposal to give local authorities operating joint committees, and combined authorities, but not councils as a whole, the freedom to hold formal meetings using video conferencing facilities. We will respond in due course.

Ministry of Defence

Military Intervention

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what criteria is used by his Department to estimate the level of civilian casualties as a result of UK airstrikes.

Mark Lancaster: In line with International Humanitarian Law, pre-strike assessments are undertaken to ensure that we minimise the risk to civilians and civilian objects. Post-strike the UK uses a range of methods, which may include the use of full motion video, to judge the effectiveness of its airstrikes and to determine whether we have caused civilian casualties. The Ministry of Defence is committed to investigating any credible reports that UK airstrikes have been responsible for civilian casualties.

Ministry of Defence: Flags

Martin Docherty-Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will place in to the library of the House a copy of his Department's policy on flying the EU flag on departmental property.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: Government policy on the flying of flags at Government buildings is owned by the Department of Culture, Media and Sport and the Ministry of Defence regulations are set out in Queen's Regulations (Chapter 8). These policies are available at the links below:https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/15438/flying_flags_guide.pdfhttps://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/493547/20150529-QR_Army_Amdt_31_Jul_2013.pdf

Type 23 Frigates

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will confirm the in-service date for the GWS 35 Sea Ceptor anti-air missile that is being integrated with the Royal Navy's Type 23 frigate fleet.

Guto Bebb: On current plans the In-Service Date for the Sea Ceptor air defence system on the Royal Navy's Type 23 frigates is March 2018.

Aerospace Industry: North Wales

Hywel Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of the UK leaving the EU on the aerospace industry in North Wales.

Guto Bebb: The Ministry of Defence is working closely with defence industry and other Government Departments to understand the implications and opportunities presented by the UK's departure from the European Union.The European defence sector is closely integrated and leading companies have a presence right across Europe including North Wales.

Aerospace Industry: North Wales

Hywel Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many aerospace jobs in North Wales are sustained by contracts with his Department.

Guto Bebb: North Wales remains a cornerstone in the UK's aerospace industry. RAF Valley is a significant employer in the region, providing advanced fast jet training for the RAF. Components for hundreds of European-based F-35 aircraft will also be serviced and maintained at the Defence Electronics and Components Agency in North Wales; work which will sustain hundreds of highly-skilled jobs in the region.The Ministry of Defence routinely publishes information about regional expenditure with UK industry and supported employment. The latest available statistics can be found on gov.uk at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/mod-regional-expenditure-with-uk-industry-and-supported-employment-201516.The data shows that around 5,250 jobs in Wales are supported by defence expenditure.

BAE Systems: North Wales

Hywel Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will set out the contracts that his Department holds with BAE Systems in North Wales.

Guto Bebb: The Ministry of Defence (MOD) has five open contracts with BAE Systems in North Wales. Four of these are in support of the Hawk training aircraft and one is for support to Tornado-related equipment.In addition, the MOD has one contract with MBDA, which is part-owned by BAE Systems, for Sea Skua missile system support. Work on this contract is also undertaken in North Wales.It should be noted that this analysis is based on contracts which accrued expenditure in 2016-17, where records indicate that some work is undertaken in North Wales. It is possible that further contracts in scope have been awarded since then, but this information is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Aerospace Industry: North Wales

Hywel Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the effect on the aerospace industry in North Wales of potential restrictions on the free movement of people after the UK leaves the EU.

Guto Bebb: The Ministry of Defence is working closely with defence industry and other Government Departments to understand the implications and opportunities presented by the UK's departure from the European Union.We assess that UK defence industry has relatively low exposure to the EU labour market, compared to the wider economy.Through our future partnership with the European Union, we want to explore how best to ensure that our industries can continue working together to deliver the capabilities that we need to protect the UK and its allies and partners.

Armed Forces: Resignations

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to his Department's Career Transition Partnership Annual statistics: UK Regular Service Personnel Employment 1 April 2012 to 31 March 2017 published on 25 January 2018,  how many Service leavers from (a) the Royal Navy (b) the Army (c) the RAF classed as economically inactive six months after leaving their branch of the armed forces were not in (i) in Education, training, volunteering  (ii) Travelling or abroad (iii) economically inactive due to medical reasons (iv) looking after family (v) in retirement; in each of the last five years.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: An estimated 264 Service leavers during Financial Year (FY) 2015-16 used a billable Career Transition Partnership (CTP) service and self-reported as being economically inactive for ‘other’ reasons (i.e. not in education, training or volunteering, travelling or abroad, reporting medical reasons, looking after family or retired) six months after leaving Service. Of these;34 were estimated to be Naval Service leavers156 were estimated to be Army Service leavers74 were estimated to be RAF Service leavers An estimated 233 Service leavers during FY 2016-17 used a billable CTP service and self-reported as being economically inactive for ‘other’ reasons (i.e. not in education, training or volunteering, travelling or abroad, reporting medical reasons, looking after family or retired) six months after leaving Service. Of these;47 were estimated to be Naval Service leavers136 were estimated to be Army Service leavers50 were estimated to be RAF Service leavers Data held on reasons for economic inactivity were not processed and compiled prior to FY 2015-16.

Armed Forces: Redundancy

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to his Department's Career Transition Partnership Annual statistics: UK Regular Service Personnel Employment 1 April 2012 to 31 March 2017 published, 25 January 2018, how many Service leavers from (a) the Royal Navy (b) the Army (c) the RAF selected for redundancy between September 2011 and June 2014, who used a billable CTP service and were classed as economically inactive six months after leaving their branch of the armed forces, were not in (i) in Education, training, volunteering (ii) Travelling or abroad (iii) economically inactive due to medical reasons (iv) looking after family (v) in retirement; in each of the last three years.

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to his Department's Career Transition Partnership Annual statistics: UK Regular Service Personnel Employment 1 April 2012 to 31 March 2017 published, 25 January 2018, how many Service leavers from (a) the Royal Navy (b) the Army (c) the RAF who (i) chose to be selected for redundancy and (ii) did not choose to be selected for redundancy between September 2011 and June 2014, who used a billable CTP service and were classed as economically inactive six months after leaving their branch of the armed forces, were not in (i) in Education, training, volunteering (ii) Travelling or abroad (iii) economically inactive due to medical reasons (iv) looking after family (v) in retirement; in each of the last three years.

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to his Department's Career Transition Partnership Annual statistics: UK Regular Service Personnel Employment 1 April 2012 to 31 March 2017 published, 25 January 2018, how many service leavers from (a) the Royal Navy (b) the Army (c) the RAF selected for redundancy in (i) tranche 1 (ii) tranche 2 (iii) tranche 3 (iv) tranche 4 between September 2011 and June 2014, who used a billable CTP service and were classed as economically inactive six months after leaving their branch of the armed forces were not in (A) in education, training, volunteering, (B) travelling or abroad, (C) economically inactive due to medical reasons, (D) looking after family and (E) in retirement in each of the last three years.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: An estimated 415 Service leavers selected for redundancy between September 2011 and June 2014 used a billable Career Transition Partnership (CTP) service and self-reported as being economically inactive for ‘other’ reasons (i.e. not in education, training or volunteering, travelling or abroad, reporting medical reasons, looking after family or retired) six months after leaving Service. Of these;58 were estimated to be Naval Service leavers247 were estimated to be Army Service leavers111 were estimated to be RAF Service leavers Of these 415;196 left during Tranche 1, of which 54 were estimated to be Naval Service leavers, 68 were estimated to be Army Service leavers, and 74 were estimated to be RAF Service leavers.106 left during Tranche 2, of which three were estimated to be Naval Service leavers, 67 were estimated to be Army Service leavers, and 36 were estimated to be RAF Service leavers)87 left during Tranche 3, all of which were estimated to be Army Service leavers.26 left during Tranche 4, nearly all of which were estimated to be Army Service leavers (fewer than three were RAF Service leavers). Of these 415, an estimated 309 were applicants for redundancy, broken down by Service as follows:38 were estimated to be Naval Service leavers200 were estimated to be Army Service leavers70 were estimated to be RAF Service leavers An estimated 106 were non-applicants broken down by Service as follows:19 were estimated to be Naval Service leavers46 were estimated to be Army Service leavers41 were estimated to be RAF Service leavers Estimated numbers have been calculated using sample data, with proportions applied to the overall redundancy population figure. Totals may not equal the sum of their parts. The Ministry of Defence only holds information on Service leavers who were economically inactive six months after leaving Service.

Armed Forces: Redundancy

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many service personnel from (a) the Royal Navy, (b) the Army and (c) the RAF were selected for redundancy between September 2011 and June 2014 and have since rejoined the armed forces.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: The requested information could not be collated in the time available. I will write to the hon. Member with details as soon as possible.

Armed Forces: Redundancy

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the estimated cost was incurred through (a) the Core Resettlement Programme, (b) Career Transition Partnership, (c) CTP Future Horizons and (d) the Employment Support Programme to support personnel made redundant from the armed forces between September 2011 and June 2014.

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many personnel made redundant from the armed forces between September 2011 and June 2014 used (a) the Core Resettlement Programme (b) Career Transition Partnership (c) CTP Future Horizons and (d) the Employment Support Programme.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: Between September 2011 and June 2014, the Ministry of Defence (MOD) ran a redundancy programme resulting in 12,134 Service personnel being selected for redundancy, of which 10,851 used a billable Career Transition Partnership (CTP) Service. All Regular and Gurkha personnel leaving the UK Armed Forces through the redundancy programme were entitled to receive the highest level of support through the Full Resettlement Programme (FRP) (now called the Core Resettlement Programme). The MOD has no records of any personnel electing to use a lower level of provision.The estimated cost incurred through the Career Transition Partnership (CTP) contract to support Service personnel made redundant between June 2011 and September 2014 was £5.2 million.

Armed Forces: Redundancy

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to his Department's Career Transition Partnership Annual statistics: UK Regular Service Personnel Employment 1 April 2012 to 31 March 2017 published, 25 January 2018, how many Service leavers from the (a) Royal Navy, (b) Army and (c) RAF who (i) chose to be selected for redundancy and (ii) did not choose to be selected for redundancy between September 2011 and June 2014, and used a billable Career Transition Partnership service were classified as unemployed in each of the last three years.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: Between September 2011 and June 2014, the Ministry of Defence ran a redundancy programme resulting in 12,134 Service personnel being selected for redundancy, of which 10,851 used a billable Career Transition Partnership (CTP) Service.An estimated 746 applicants selected for redundancy between September 2011 and June 2014 used a billable CTP service and self-reported as being unemployed six months after leaving Service. Of these;28 were estimated to be Naval Service leavers657 were estimated to be Army Service leavers61 were estimated to be RAF Service leaversAn estimated 353 non-applicants selected for redundancy between September 2011 and June 2014 used a billable CTP service and self-reported as being unemployed six months after leaving Service. Of these;47 were estimated to be Naval Service leavers262 were estimated to be Army Service leavers43 were estimated to be RAF Service leaversEstimated numbers have been calculated using sample data, with proportions applied to the overall redundancy population figure. Totals may not equal the sum of their parts. The Ministry of Defence only holds information on Service leavers who were economically inactive six months after leaving Service.

Nuclear Weapons

Alan Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the compatibility with the Government's policy on nuclear non-proliferation of the development of new types of nuclear weapon for use in UK defence.

Mark Lancaster: Any decisions on UK nuclear deterrence policy or capability will be in line with the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), which remains the cornerstone of the global non-proliferation regime. Given the current threat to international security, and the reality that this will continue for the foreseeable future, our independent nuclear deterrent remains as vital today as ever.

BAE Systems: North Wales

Hywel Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what plans his Department has to let future contracts to BAE Systems in North Wales; and if he will make a statement.

Guto Bebb: The Ministry of Defence has a number of ongoing contracts with BAE Systems, including five where work is undertaken in North Wales. We cannot comment on future requirements, potential contractors or where work may be carried out.

Ministry of Defence: Capita

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many contracts his Department holds with Capita; and what the total value of those contracts is.

Mark Lancaster: The Ministry of Defence has 89 active contracts with Capita, and its subsidiaries, with a total value of approximately £1.291 billion.

Capita

Mr Mark Francois: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what contingency plans he has in place to maintain army recruitment in the event of Capita plc becoming insolvent.

Mark Lancaster: Consistent with Defence's routine approach to outsourcing activities, the Army maintains a contingency plan for the Recruiting Partnership Programme in the event of a change in circumstances with Capita.

Armed Forces: Clothing

Thelma Walker: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he has assessed the potential merits of donating used service personnel clothing to homelessness charities.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: The Ministry of Defence (MOD) gifting policy does not normally permit the donation of surplus assets.The MOD receives many requests from individuals, charitable and other worthy organisations for the donation of surplus assets, but must ensure an even-handed approach is taken. It would be unfair to support one individual or organisation while refusing requests from others. Gifting to charities, voluntary groups, individuals or companies is therefore only considered by exception.

Submarines

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the full establishment is for the Submarine Service; and what its manning was as of 31 January 2018.

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the establishment of engineers for the Submarine Service is; and how many such engineers are available for service.

Mark Lancaster: The latest published figures for the Trained Strength for the Royal Navy Submarine Service show that there were 830 Officers and 3,150 Ratings. Of these there are 430 Officers and 2,100 Ratings assigned to engineering branches within the Submarine Service. The number of engineers available at any one time will be determined by such factors as leave and training requirements.All totals are rounded in accordance with the Defence Statistics rounding policy; therefore totals may not equal the sum of their parts. All numbers are rounded to the nearest 10 with numbers ending in five rounded to the nearest multiple of 20 to avoid bias.

Ministry of Defence: Cost Effectiveness

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to his Department's Defence in the Media blog, published on 1 February 2018, in which financial years the £5 billion in efficiencies referred to were realised.

Guto Bebb: Following Spending Reviews in 2010 and 2013, the Ministry of Defence identified a number of areas in the Equipment Plan with significant opportunities for further efficiency. For the period between financial years 2010-11 and 2016-17 inclusive, the Department has so far delivered around £5 billion of efficiencies.

Department for Work and Pensions

Personal Independence Payment: Mental Health

Christine Jardine: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps her Department is taking to issue backdated payments as a result of the High Court judgement on the Social Security (Personal Independence Payment) (Amendment) Regulations 2017.

Sarah Newton: I refer the Hon. Member to the statement made by myself, Official Report, 30 January 2018, Column 703.

Personal Independence Payment: Mental Health

Henry Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when her Department plans to include provision to consider mental health issues on the personal independence payments assessment form; and if he will make a statement.

Sarah Newton: The assessment for Personal Independence Payment (PIP) looks at an individual’s ability to carry out a series of everyday activities. The assessment considers the overall impact of a claimant’s health condition or impairment on their functional ability, rather than focusing on a particular diagnosis. Therefore the PIP assessment forms that underpin the assessment include provision to consider mental health issues as well as physical issues.66% of PIP recipients with mental health conditions get the enhanced rate daily living component, compared with 22% who received the highest DLA care component. And 31% of PIP recipients with mental health conditions get the enhanced rate mobility rate, compared with just 10% of DLA recipients.

Department for Work and Pensions: Capita

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many contracts her Department holds with Capita; and what the total value of those contracts is.

Kit Malthouse: The attached table shows all the contracts DWP currently holds with Capita including the total value of the contracts.



Capita Contracts
(Word Document, 14.95 KB)

Social Security Benefits: Disqualification

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what discussions her Department has had with the Department for Health and Social Care on the potential links between mental health and welfare sanctions.

Alok Sharma: I refer the Honourable Member to the answer I provided to Question 121885 on 19 January 2018.

Social Security Benefits: Disqualification

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps her Department is taking to mitigate the effect of welfare sanctions on people with mental health problems.

Alok Sharma: I refer the Honourable Member to the answer I provided to Question 123884 on 26 January 2018.

Personal Independence Payment: Mental Health

Marsha De Cordova: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the timetable is for her Department to update the personal independence payment assessment guide following the judgment of RF v Secretary of State for Work And Pensions [2017] EWHC 3375 (Admin) (21 December 2017).

Sarah Newton: I refer the Hon. Member to the statement made by my Rt. Hon Friend, the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, Official Report, 23 January 2018, Column 139.

Personal Independence Payment: Mental Health

Marsha De Cordova: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what criteria her Department is using to prioritise the personal independence payment claims it is reviewing.

Sarah Newton: I refer the Hon. Member to the statement made by myself, Official Report, 30 January 2018, Column 704.

Personal Independence Payment: Mental Health

Marsha De Cordova: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether her Department's review of 1.6 million personal independence payment claims includes those claims which (a) scored 0 points and (b) were not awarded personal independence payment.

Sarah Newton: I refer the Hon. Member to the statement made by myself, Official Report, 30 January 2018, Columns 704-705.

Personal Independence Payment: Mental Health

Marsha De Cordova: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether there be an appeal process for personal independence payment claimants who believe they are entitled to back payments but are not contacted by her Department in the course of its review of all personal independence payment claims.

Sarah Newton: I refer the Hon. Member to the statement made by myself, Official Report, 30 January 2018, Column 704.

Personal Independence Payment: Mental Health

Marsha De Cordova: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the increase in the estimated number of people eligible for higher personal independence payment support from 164,000 to 220,000, if her Department will publish an updated equality assessment.

Sarah Newton: I refer the Hon. Member to the statement made by myself, Official Report, 30 January 2018, Column 708.

Personal Independence Payment: Mental Health

Marsha De Cordova: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate her Department has made of the cost to the public purse of the review of all personal independence payment claims.

Sarah Newton: I refer the Hon. Member to the statement made by myself, Official Report, 30 January 2018, Column 703.

Universal Credit

Stephen Kerr: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to her Department's test and learn approach to universal credit, what her Department has learned about universal credit during the January pause of its roll-out; and what changes her Department plans to make as a result that learning.

Alok Sharma: The Universal Credit Agile methodology means we continuously learn during rollout, listening to feedback from our staff, claimants and stakeholders, and building improvements into the system.We release fortnightly updates of the Universal Credit IT build, with the latest release due on 14 February 2018. In addition to various technical fixes, this release will include the changes necessary to remove waiting days for all new claims made on or after 14 February, as announced in the 2017 Budget. It will also include improvements to the processes for referring claimants for Work Capability Assessments and for claimants to record their work search activity.

Children: Maintenance

Angela Crawley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how money has been accrued to the public purse the Government from (a) Child Maintenance collection charges and (b) Child Maintenance collection charges from victims of domestic abuse since the introduction of those charges.

Kit Malthouse: In the three full financial years (2014/15-2016/17) since the introduction of charging, £25.9M has been received by the Child Maintenance Service. £17.7M from paying parents and £3.4M from receiving parents. The remaining £4.8M is made up from application fees and enforcement charges. Information is not available on charges where domestic abuse has been declared.

Mortgages: South East

Peter Kyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people in (a) Hove constituency, (b) East Sussex, (c) the South East receive Support for Mortgage Interest; and how many of those people receive (i) employment support allowance, (ii) personal independence payments and (iii) jobseeker’s allowance.

Kit Malthouse: The table below gives the Department’s estimates of the caseload of Support for Mortgage Interest (SMI) split by benefit and one selected geography.  All SMISMI and Employment and Support AllowanceSMI and Job Seeker’s AllowanceSouth East11,0005,000- Table 1: SMI caseload by benefit in one selected geographyData is not available on:the number of SMI claimants in receipt of Personal Independence Payment;the number of claimants of SMI in Hove and geographies smaller than Government Office Region.Figures are rounded to the nearest 1,000 cases.‘-’ denotes under 500 cases.

Mortgages: Interest Payments

Peter Kyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many recipients of Support for Mortgage Interest have received information on forthcoming changes to that scheme.

Kit Malthouse: To date, the department has sent information to 105,000 SMI claimants.

Universal Credit: Publicity

Dr Rupa Huq: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to publicise information to claimants eligible for universal credit who do not have internet access.

Kit Malthouse: The attached table shows all the contracts DWP currently holds with Capita including the total value of the contracts. 



Capita Contracts
(Word Document, 14.95 KB)

State Retirement Pensions: Cost of Living

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent assessment her Department has made of the relative rate of state pension and cost of living.

Guy Opperman: The Government is committed to ensuring economic security for people at every stage of their life, including when they reach retirement. Legislation for the basic and new State Pensions allows for annual increases at least in line with average earnings growth. This ensures that people above State Pension age receive increases that are in line with earnings growth in the population as a whole. In addition, this Government has committed to increases in line with the Triple Lock for the duration of this Parliament, ensuring that increases will be the highest of the growth in prices, earnings or 2.5%. For 2018/19 these pensions will increase by 3% (the rate of prices growth under the Consumer Price Index). The full rate of basic State Pension as a proportion of average earnings is now at one of its highest levels in the last 30 years.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Badgers: South West

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he plans to hold discussions with the Devon and Cornwall Constabulary on its proposal to end the protection of badgers.

George Eustice: We have no plans to reduce the legal protection afforded to badgers in England. The Devon and Cornwall Constabulary have never advocated the removal of the Protection of Badgers Act across the UK. In responding to a consultation in 2015 about the criteria for badger control (culling) licences, they suggested an option might be for Defra to consider the removal of the Act in cull zones to allow greater flexibility in the methods used to stop the spread of Bovine TB. Defra did not consider this necessary.

Waste: Exports

Alex Sobel: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how his Department ensures that waste exported via PERNs are suitably reprocessed outside the EU and OECD countries.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: Businesses involved in the shipment of wastes are required to take all necessary steps to ensure that the waste they ship is managed in an environmentally sound manner throughout its shipment and during its recycling. Exporters accredited to issue PERNs are required to provide suitable evidence that the sites to which they send waste are operating to standards broadly equivalent to those of EU countries. The UK environmental regulators take an intelligence led approach to checking compliance with these obligations focusing on specific problematic wastes. Enforcement activity occurs in transit, at roadsides and at ports. However, the regulators continue to focus significant effort on identifying, stopping and intervening at source prior to illegal exports taking place. The regulators also provide easily understood guidance for those responsible for exporting waste which allows anyone involved in the export of waste to determine which wastes can be legitimately exported to which countries and the procedures they must follow to do things legally. Last year the Environment Agency issued 130 stop notices, prohibiting the export of unsuitable waste. It also stopped 4,565 tonnes of waste destined for illegal export at ports and intervened further upstream to prevent a further 15,113 tonnes of waste from reaching our ports. This work ensures we are not exporting our problem wastes for unsuitable treatment or disposal. We cannot ultimately dictate how UK waste is managed once it leaves the UK. There is a system of international rules on shipments which must be followed. The authorities in countries that receive UK waste also need to be clear about the types of waste they will accept and the waste import procedures they require exporters to adhere to.

Neonicotinoids: EU Action

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the timetable is for the scientific evidence expected from the European Food Safety Authority to be presented; if he will take steps unilaterally to ban neonicotinoids in the UK in the event of undue time being taken at EU level on this matter; and if he will make a statement.

George Eustice: The European Commission has asked the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) to review the risks to bees from neonicotinoid pesticides. EFSA announced in November 2017 that it expects to finalise its assessments in February 2018. A number of Member States have indicated that they wish to see the outputs of this work before reaching a position on neonicotinoids. Once the EFSA work is complete, negotiations on this issue should restart in earnest.

Home Office

Home Office: Capita

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many contracts her Department holds with Capita; and what the total value of those contracts is.

Victoria Atkins: The Home Office currently holds 3 contracts with Capita, with a total contract value of £309m. The Home Office has since 2010, published details of its contracts over 10K on the Pan-Gov’t Contracts Finder portal, as part of the HMT Transparency Agenda. The link to the portal is as follows: https://www.gov.uk/contracts-finder

Passports

Afzal Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she has taken to prepare for the potential increase in demand for passport services ahead of the passport price increase.

Caroline Nokes: Operational contingency plans are regularly reviewed to ensure demand can be serviced without significant impact on customer experience. Her Majesty’s Passport Office has considered what additional short term capacity may be needed to respond to changes in potential demand ahead of the proposed passport price increase. This includes staffing levels, IT capacity and our suppliers’ capacity.

Passports: Russia

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will take steps to ensure that Russian-UK dual nationals who are unable to renew their passport due to their Russian maiden name being on their UK passport and also unable to return to Russia to update their name on their Russian passport and return without a valid UK passport can renew their passports and be exempt from the single identity on a passport rule.

Caroline Nokes: Dual nationals changing their name on a foreign passport must follow the rules and regulations of that country and HM Passport Office is unable to assist in the change of name process. In the absence of a British passport a Certificate of Right of Abode can be affixed to a foreign passport confirming the holders right to enter the UK without immigration restriction which will enable them to leave and re-enter the UK.

Passports: Fees and Charges

Afzal Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the effect of planned passport fee increases on people without access to internet services.

Caroline Nokes: With over 90 per cent of adults in the UK having access to the internet, and third parties being permitted to apply on a person’s behalf, it has been assessed that the vast majority of people will face no obstacle to applying for their passport online.However, Her Majesty’s Passport Office is developing further help for those who wish to apply online, which includes exploring options for making services available from the High Street and by working in conjunction with community support groups.

Refugees

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 29 January 2018 to Question 124424, on Refugees, what guidance has been issued to job centre staff on the new scheme.

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 29 January 2018 to Question 124424, what the evidential basis was for the conclusion that the new scheme was tested successfully.

Caroline Nokes: The scheme involves contacting the refugees at the point when they are granted their status to see if they wish to apply for benefits and require assistance to do so. If they say they do, an appointment at a local DWP office is arranged for them.The scheme was first put in place in the North East, Yorkshire and Humberside region and extended to other regions of the UK after it was found that it ensured that the persons received a prompt appointment and consideration of their benefits applications could therefore begin.The scheme is designed to ensure that the refugees receive the first payment of any benefit they are entitled to before their Home Office support ends. Further information about the scheme will be published in due course.All frontline DWP staff have access to operational instructions that explain the support available to refugees. Staff in the areas where the refugees have been accommodated by the Home Office have received full information to make them aware of the scheme and the need to process the claims quickly.

Asylum: Detainees

Sammy Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many asylum seekers who have claimed to be a victim of torture have been detained at immigration centres.

Caroline Nokes: Specific information on the number of those who have claimed to be a victim of torture who have been detained at immigration centres is not currently published.However, all officials making decisions on asylum claims receive a dedicated five-week foundation training programme which incorporates all relevant aspects of international and domestic law. Within this programme there are specific sections on torture and medical reports, and how they should be considered and analysed in asylum claims. Medical reports will be considered together with other written and oral evidence in determining an asylum claim to ensure alleged victims of torture have their claims assessed fairly and sensitively.The Adults at Risk policy came into effect on 12 September 2016 and governs the detention suitability considerations of all cases where vulnerability in immigration detention may arise. The policy can be viewed in full in the following link;https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/.../adults-at-risk-policy-guidance_v2_0.pdf

Asylum: Detainees

Sammy Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what plans her Department has to review its policy on detention for asylum seekers who have made an application on the grounds they were victims of torture.

Sammy Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she plans to revise the definition of torture used in the Home Office's at risk policy in light of that definition being ruled unlawful by the High Court.

Caroline Nokes: The Government is considering how it can address the Court’s findings in relation to the statutory guidance covering the adults at risk in immigration detention policy. This includes consideration of the definition of torture that should apply in the policy. The policy already covers asylum seekers who claim to have been the victim of torture and will continue to do so.The Court did not find that the definition of torture currently in use in the policy was unlawful. It did, however, find that the definition used between September 2016 and December 2016 had been unlawful.

Overseas Students: Employment

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what restrictions there are on the (a) working hours and (b) type of work permitted for international students with tier 4 visas; and whether her Department plans to implement further such restrictions.

Caroline Nokes: Tier 4 (General) students studying courses at degree level or above at Higher Education Institutions (HEI) are permitted to work for 20 hours per week during term time and full-time during vacations. Tier 4 (General) students studying courses below degree level at HEIs are permitted to work for 10 hours per week during term time and full-time during vacations. In addition, courses of study may include a work placement, provided it is an integral and assessed part of the course.Students are permitted to undertake a wide range of jobs whilst studying, however Tier 4 (General) students cannot be self-employed or employed as a professional sportsperson, an entertainer, or a doctor in training, except where the student is studying on a recognised foundation programme under Tier 4.

British Nationality

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will publish the conclusions of the review of the operation of Section 40(4A) of the British Nationality Act 1981; and what steps her Department has taken as a result of these conclusions.

Caroline Nokes: Section 40(4B) of the British Nationality Act provides for a review after 12 months from the legislation coming into force, and then after a further three years. The next review period does not conclude until the end of July 2018. The Secretary of State will consider the conclusions of the review after its completion.

Vetting

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the average time taken was for the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) to (a) process the DBS application and either scan or return to the applicant for amendments, (b) search the Police National Computer, (c) search the Children's Barred List where appropriate, (d) search the Adults' Barred List where appropriate, (e) search the records held by local police where appropriate and (f) print the DBS certificate and return all necessary documentation to the applicant (i) nationally, (ii) in London and (iii) in Hampstead and Kilburn constituency in each year since 2016.

Victoria Atkins: Table 1 shows the average number of days taken by the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) to scan an application, search the Police National Computer, search the records held by local police where appropriate and to print the DBS certificate for applications nationally. Perioda) Time to Scan the Application (days)b)Time to Search PNC (days)e) Time to Search Local Police Records (days)f) Time to Print Certificate (days)01-Apr-16 to 31-Mar-170.542.429.721.7201-Apr-17 to 31-Dec-170.733.325.111.66 Table 2 shows the average number of days taken by the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) to scan an application, search the Police National Computer, search the records held by local police where appropriate and to print the DBS certificate for applications with a London postcode. Perioda) Time to Scan the Application (days)b)Time to Search PNC (days)e) Time to Search Local Police Records (days)f) Print Certificate (days)01-Apr-16 to 31-Mar-170.482.3723.881.6101-Apr-17 to 31-Dec-170.613.095.491.53 Table 3 shows the average number of days taken by the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) to scan an application, search the Police National Computer, search the records held by local police where appropriate and to print the DBS certificate for applications within the Hampstead and Kilburn constituency. Perioda) Time to Scan the Application (days)b)Time to Search PNC (Days)e) Time to Search Local Police Records (days)f) Print Certificate (days)01-Apr-16 to 31-Mar-170.532.2720.461.5901-Apr-17 to 31-Dec-170.622.954.441.51Figures for the average processing time for returning paper applications cannot be provided without incurring disproportionate cost.Checks of the Children’s barred list and the Adults’ barred list are carried out in parallel to the local police checks and data on the average time taken to conduct these checks cannot be provided without incurring disproportionate costs.

Immigrants: Finance

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many migrants granted leave to remain in the UK have had no recourse to public funds conditions imposed on them because of exceptional circumstances since 2010.

Caroline Nokes: No Recourse to Public Funds is the default condition for grants of leave to remain in most categories. It is not a condition that is normally imposed due to exceptional circumstances.Data is not held in the requested format and to establish whether a migrant did not or did not have the no recourse to public funds condition imposed due to exceptional circumstances would require individual examination of records. This would incur disproportionate cost. Total grants of leave to remain can be found in table ex_01_q in the Home Office’s Immigration Statistics July to September release, available for download at:https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/immigration-statistics-quarterly-release with the data tables athttps://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/immigration-statistics-july-to-september-2017-data-tables

Members: Correspondence

Sir Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 7 November 2017 to Question 110954, when she plans to write to the hon. Member for Christchurch separately on the case of the application of Mr Morley for British citizenship.

Caroline Nokes: The former Immigration Minister Brandon Lewis responded to Sir Christopher’s enquiry on 17 November 2017. A copy of this response was re-sent on 5 February.

Immigration: EU Nationals

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate she has made of the number of (a) dependants, (b) spouses and (c) civil partners of non-UK EU nationals normally resident in the UK who are not in the UK on 31 March 2019 and who would be affected by the Prime Minister's proposed changes to EU citizen's rights in any transition period.

Caroline Nokes: Dependent children and parents, spouses and civil partners of non-UK EU nationals who are normally resident in the UK but who are not present in the UK on 31 March 2019 are covered by the agreement on citizens’ rights reached with the EU last year, and documented in the Joint Report published on 8 December 2017. These groups of people are not affected by any negotiations concerning the rights of those arriving during the proposed implementation period.

Scotland Office

Local Growth Deals: Aberdeen

Ross Thomson: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what plans his Department has to assess the effectiveness of the implementation of the Aberdeen City Deal.

David Mundell: Robust governance structures and processes were established prior to the commencement of the Aberdeen City Region Deal. These provide assurance to the government that there is open and transparent decision making, governance and project delivery. Central to the governance arrangements is the Aberdeen City Region Deal Joint Committee which oversees the implementation and monitoring. In addition there is an Aberdeen City Region Deal Programme Implementation Board which meets quarterly to review progress against agreed implementation milestones and objectives. Scotland Office officials sit on the Implementation Board. Overall scrutiny of the implementation of the Aberdeen City Region Deal is the responsibility of the Scottish City Region Deal Delivery Board which is comprised of senior officials from Scotland Office, the Cities and Local Growth Unit and the Scottish Government. The Delivery Board meets quarterly to review progress.

Bridges: Scotland

Hugh Gaffney: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on the viability of building a bridge from Scotland to the island of Ireland.

David Mundell: I have regular discussions with colleagues on a range of issues. Upgrading our transport infrastructure underpins one of the core components of our Industrial Strategy: Creating the economic infrastructure that will increase productivity and drive growth across the whole country. Our Industrial Strategy, and the Transport Investment Strategy that builds on it, constitutes an important opportunity to consider these kinds of decisions strategically, ensuring that our approach to infrastructure not only provides the basics for the economy, but also actively supports our long term national interests. That is why we have established the National Infrastructure Commission (NIC) to advise us on investment. The NIC are in the process of producing a National Infrastructure Assessment, which will be published this year, containing recommendations for how our identified infrastructure needs and priorities should be addressed.

HM Treasury

Tax Avoidance: Fines

Tulip Siddiq: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, on tax avoidance, how many penalties were imposed under the General Anti-Abuse Rule regarding (a) income tax and (b) corporation tax in each in (i) 2016 and (ii) 2017.

Mel Stride: The General Anti-Abuse Rule (GAAR) penalty applies to tax arrangements entered into on or after 15 September 2016. Before a GAAR penalty can be charged, HMRC must first enquire into tax returns once they are received and gather all relevant facts. For example, for income tax, arrangements to which a GAAR penalty may apply can first feature in tax returns in the year ended 5 April 2017, which must be filed with HMRC by 31 January 2018.Whilst no penalties have been charged to date, HMRC is actively using the GAAR and in all cases referred to the GAAR Advisory Panel to date, the panel have agreed with HMRC, and been of the opinion that the cases should be pursued for GAAR counteraction. GAAR Panel decisions are published online at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/tax-avoidance-general-anti-abuse-rule-gaar

Aircraft: Isle of Man

Dame Margaret Hodge: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, when the scoping assessment of his Department's review of the taxation of the import of business jets into the Isle of Man will be published.

Mel Stride: HM Treasury is currently carrying out its review into the Isle of Man’s administration of VAT in relation to aircraft and yachts. HM Treasury aims to complete the review in Spring 2018.

Aircraft: Isle of Man

Dame Margaret Hodge: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what correspondence he has had with Pierre Moscovici on the import of business jets to the Isle of Man.

Mel Stride: HM Treasury is currently carrying out a review of the Isle of Man’s VAT procedures for the importation of aircraft and yachts. We will maintain regular contact with the Commission as the review progresses.

Financial Services: Technology

Adam Afriyie: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent steps he has taken to promote financial technology.

Adam Afriyie: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent steps he has taken to promote alternative finance.

Adam Afriyie: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent assessment he has made of the contribution of financial technology to the UK’s financial sector.

John Glen: Fintech offers a significant opportunity for the financial sector, providing new jobs and delivering benefits to consumers through increased competition and innovation. It contributes £6.6bn annually to the UK economy, employing 60,000 people across 1,600 companies. The most recent step taken to promote the UK’s fintech industry, is the government’s second International Fintech Conference, due to be held on 22 March 2018. The conference will help showcase the UK fintech sector to investors from across the globe. The government is continuing to support alternative finance, through implementing proportionate, principles based regimes for peer-to-peer (P2P) and equity-based crowdfunding that balance consumer protection with allowing the sectors to grow and evolve; and various supportive tax measures.

Retail Trade: Small Businesses

Damien Moore: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what fiscal support the Government provides to small businesses on high streets affected by trends related to online retail.

Mel Stride: The government recognises business rates can represent a high fixed cost for small businesses on our high streets. This is why at Autumn Budget 17 the Chancellor announced cuts of £2.3bn to support businesses and improve the fairness of the business rates system.This builds on both Spring Budget 2017 which provided £435m of support following the recent revaluation; and Budget 2016 which announced major reforms worth almost £9bn over five years, including permanently doubling Small Business Rate Relief.On the issue of online retail, the government is currently reviewing the wider taxation of the digital economy. This includes ensuring international corporate tax rules deliver fair results across different businesses and that sellers operating through online marketplaces pay the right amount of VAT.

Economic Situation

Mr Nigel Evans: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the cost to the public purse was of drafting and publishing his Department's May 2016 report, HM Treasury analysis: the immediate economic impact of leaving the EU, Cm 9292.

John Glen: The Treasury has always had officials working on UK and EU economic and policy issues and they, together with civil servants across the department, contributed to writing “HM Treasury analysis: the immediate economic impact of leaving the EU, Cm 9292”. The costs of producing and publishing this analysis was in line with the costs of other Treasury publications.

Revenue and Customs: Directors

Chris Stephens: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether the Director General of Border Coordination for HM Revenue & Customs is a member of the HMRC Executive Committee.

Chris Stephens: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether the Director General of Border Coordination for HMRC is a member of the HMRC ExCom Brexit Committee.

Chris Stephens: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, who the line manager is for the Director General of Border Coordination for HMRC.

Mel Stride: The Director General of Border Coordination for HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC), Karen Wheeler, is a member of the HMRC Executive Committee (ExCom) and ExCom Brexit sub-committee. Her line manager is the Chief Executive Officer and First Permanent Secretary of HMRC, Jon Thompson.

Revenue and Customs: Staff

Chris Stephens: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to page 35 of the HMRC Annual Report and Accounts 2016-17, how many HMRC staff are currently planned to transfer across to the DWP in line with the migration timetable for Universal Credit through to 2022.

Chris Stephens: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to page 35 of the HMRC Annual Report and Accounts 2016-17, which HMRC buildings are currently planned to transfer across to the DWP in line with the migration timetable for Universal Credit through to 2022.

Mel Stride: HMRC are working with colleagues in DWP on plans for staff and building transfers. Transfers are dependent on DWP’s requirements and HMRC’s Tax Credit caseload run down. The present planning assumption is that approximately 2,000 staff currently working in Guild Tower and Unicentre, Preston and Sidlaw House, Dundee will be available to transfer across to DWP in line with the migration timetable through to 2022.

Revenue and Customs: European Anti-Fraud Office

Chris Stephens: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to page 88 of the HMRC Annual Report and Accounts 2016-17, when HMRC plans to respond to the OLAF report.

Mel Stride: HMRC is analysing the detail of OLAF’s report of March 2017 and will respond to this report in due course.

Cash Dispensing: Rural Areas

Dr David Drew: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what plans he has to discuss with LINK the availability of ATMs in rural areas in respect of the Government’s Financial Inclusion Programme.

John Glen: The Government recognises that widespread free access to cash remains extremely important to the day-to-day lives of many consumers and businesses in the UK. Government will continue to engage with industry to ensure that widespread free access is maintained. The Payment Systems Regulator (PSR), which Government set up as an independent regulator in 2015 with a statutory objective to ensure that the UK’s payment systems work in the interests of their users, is monitoring developments within ATM provision, and is conducting ongoing work on the impact that changes may have. The PSR has recently published a summary of their work to date, which can be found at https://www.psr.org.uk/psr-focus/the-UK-ATM-network. The PSR has committed to using its powers to act should any of the firms it regulates behave in a way that conflicts with its statutory objectives.LINK, the main scheme behind the UK’s ATM network, has assured us and the PSR that industry is committed to maintaining an extensive network of free-to-use cash machines, and to ensuring that the present geographical spread of ATMs is maintained. LINK has announced plans to bolster its Financial Inclusion Programme, which ensures the provision of ATMs in certain areas, where demand would not otherwise make one viable. LINK has also committed to protecting all free-to-use ATMs which are a kilometre or more from the next nearest free-to-use ATM, and to ensuring that any community that loses ATM access because of a branch closure has a free ATM provided. In addition, LINK will set up publicly available monitoring on its website of every area of the country showing free ATM availability, and highlight any areas where free ATM availability is lost.

Cabinet Office

Local Government: Elections

Cat Smith: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, when he plans to publish the statutory instruments required to allow for electoral pilots at local government elections in May.

Chloe Smith: Orders enabling the pilot scheme to require voters to present identification before voting at a polling station will be published on www.gov.uk shortly. Two relatedStatutory Instruments came into force on 10 January and have been published on www.legislation.gov.uk.

Department for Exiting the European Union

Brexit

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, whether the Government's negotiating position is that the provisions of any implementation agreement will extend to the countries within the EEA.

Mr Robin Walker: Our aim is to ensure continuity during the implementation period, with international partners and the EU, and certainty for businesses and individuals. As such, our existing international agreements should continue to apply during the proposed time-limited implementation period. This includes the EEA Agreement and other important agreements which govern crucial elements of our trading and non-trading relationship with the three EEA EFTA states - Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein. Once the implementation period ends, we will no longer participate in the EU's international agreements. We will instead seek to put in place new arrangements to maintain our relationships with these countries.

Drugs: Manufacturing Industries

Anneliese Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, what assessment his Department has made of the potential effect of the withdrawal of Rules of Origin trade exemptions contained within current EU Free Trade Agreements on the competitiveness of UK medicines manufacturing and supply to third countries when the UK leaves the EU.

Mr Robin Walker: As we move into the second phase of negotiations we are confident of agreeing a bold and ambitious economic partnership with the EU that is of greater scope than any such existing agreement. The role of preferential or non-preferential Rules of Origin in any deal, and our approach to minimising administration and friction, will depend on the precise nature of the agreement between the UK and the EU. We have been working closely with the Department of Health and Social Care and the Office for Life Sciences to understand the needs of the pharmaceutical industry. Our Ministers also have regular engagement with a variety of Life Sciences companies and trade bodies, including the Association of British Pharmaceutical Industry and the BioIndustry Association through the cross-government Life Sciences Steering Group.

Brexit

Jo Platt: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, pursuant to the Answer of 18 January 2018 to Question 122345, whether the remit of the Market Access and Budget Directorate includes commissioning cross-Whitehall economic assessments on the effect of the UK leaving the EU across different sectors.

Mr Robin Walker: With respect to the remit of the Market Access and Budget Directorate, I refer the hon. Member to the answer to written parliamentary question 122345. We have been clear that the Government is undertaking a wide range of ongoing analysis in support of our EU exit negotiations and preparations. It is not standard practice to provide a running commentary on any aspect of this ongoing work.

Brexit

Jo Platt: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, how many assessments his Department has conducted into the economic impact of the UK leaving the EU, including the document EU Exit Analysis – Cross Whitehall Briefing.

Mr Robin Walker: The Government is undertaking a wide range of ongoing analysis in support of our EU exit negotiations and preparations. We have been clear that we will not provide a running commentary on any aspect of this ongoing work.

Brexit

Craig Mackinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, whether the proposed transition arrangements mean the UK will still be a member of the European Union after 29 March 2019.

Mr Robin Walker: As the Prime Minister said in Florence, the United Kingdom will cease to be a member of the European Union on 29th March 2019. This delivers on the wishes of the British public and does not change because of the implementation period.

Brexit

Jo Platt: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, pursuant to the Answer of 29 January 2018 to Question 124540, on Brexit, what assessment he has made of whether his Department's policy of not sharing reports with individuals and organisations outside government has been broken.

Mr Robin Walker: Last week, preliminary economic analysis conducted by the Government was reported on by a news organisation. We are carrying out the usual inquiries into who leaked the report.

Department for International Trade

Department for International Trade: Capita

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, how many contracts his Department holds with Capita; and what the total value of those contracts is.

Greg Hands: The Department for International Trade does not hold any major contracts with Capita. The Department uses Capita Business Services in some instances for the provision of ad hoc training and development and has raised twenty-eight purchase orders with a spend to date of £57,646.79 in financial year 2017/18. The Department has also used Capita Resourcing for the provision of ad hoc recruitment services with a spend to date of £2,640.00 in financial year 2017/18.

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

Broadband

Justin Tomlinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps his Department has taken to ensure that funding for superfast broadband solutions have public support.

Margot James: Publicly-funded superfast broadband projects under the Superfast Broadband Programme are subject to a competitive procurement process which is managed by the lead local authority. The successful supplier is selected by the local authority by determining which one has provided the most economically advantageous tender, using evaluation criteria which include cost and service quality parameters. The quality parameters can include consideration of the range of retail internet service providers who will offer retail services over the network. Broadband Delivery UK (BDUK) in DCMS provides assurance that the selected supplier’s solution meets EU state aid requirements and that there is no over-compensation of the supplier.

Arts: Northern Ireland

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what recent assessment he has made of the contribution of the growth in the creative industries in Northern Ireland to UK-wide tourism.

Michael Ellis: According to VisitBritain, over a third of visitors to the UK are drawn to locations which have been used in films and TV series. In Northern Ireland, the television series Game of Thrones has been a great draw, encouraging visitors to locations such as Giant’s Causeway and the Dark Hedge.

Performing Arts

Kevin Brennan: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what recent discussions she has had with Cabinet colleagues on the contribution of creative industry freelancers to the UK economy.

Margot James: We are talking to our EU counterparts as part of ongoing EU exit negotiations with a view to achieving the deep and special relationship the UK wishes to have with the EU post-exit. We are confident that this is in the interests of both sides. We will work hard to secure the best deal for the UK on exit and ensure that our new relationship with the EU works for business. We are also preparing for a range of possible outcomes for the audio-visual sector from the UK's negotiations with the EU.

Gambling: Young People

Alex Sobel: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps his Department is taking to reduce online gambling among under 18s.

Tracey Crouch: Protecting children and the vulnerable from being harmed or exploited by gambling is a core objective of the regulation of gambling in Great Britain, and a priority for the Government. Online gambling operators must carry out age verification checks for any UK resident who deposits money using any type of payment method other than a credit card. If the checks do not confirm that the customer is of a legal age to gamble, the operator must return any deposits made and must not pay out any winnings. The Gambling Commission is actively reviewing how protections such as age verification can continue to be strengthened, and has recently taken action to require online gambling operators to remove advertising on websites or in third party media likely to appeal particularly to people aged under 18.

Audio-visual Industry

Kevin Brennan: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether the Government plans for trade negotiations with the EU to include the audio-visual sector.

Margot James: We are talking to our EU counterparts as part of ongoing EU exit negotiations with a view to achieving the deep and special relationship the UK wishes to have with the EU post-exit. We are confident that this is in the interests of both sides. We will work hard to secure the best deal for the UK on exit and ensure that our new relationship with the EU works for business. We are also preparing for a range of possible outcomes for the audio-visual sector from the UK's negotiations with the EU.

Arts

Kevin Brennan: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to the second report of the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee, The potential impact of Brexit on the creative industries, tourism and the digital single market, published on 25 January 2018, HC 365, if he will publish a timetable outlining the steps that will need to be taken to reach trade agreements with the EU for each sector of the creative industries.

Kevin Brennan: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to the second report of the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee, The potential impact of Brexit on the creative industries, tourism and the digital single market, published on 25 January 2018, HC 365, if he will publish a quarterly update outlining the progress and future objectives of EU negotiations as they relate to his Department.

Margot James: The Government is considering the Committee's report and will formally respond to its recommendations in due course. We are seeking to negotiate a trade agreement that works for all sectors of the economy, including the creative industries. Government has been working closely with the creative industries to understand the impacts and opportunities presented by our decision to leave the EU, as well as working with them on an early sector deal as part of the Industrial Strategy to secure the sector’s future prosperity and growth. We will continue to engage the creative industries as the UK prepares to leave the European Union and to ensure any negotiations and trade agreements best serve the UK’s national interest. Due to the ongoing and sensitive nature of the EU negotiations my Department does not currently have plans to publish a quarterly update on the progress and future objectives of these negotiations.

Culture: EU Grants and Loans

Kevin Brennan: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what funds from the European Regional Development Fund were delegated to arts and culture in each of the regions in each year since 2012.

Michael Ellis: Research commissioned by Arts Council England suggests that from 2007-2016, £190m of European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) funding was awarded to projects focused on or linked to the arts, museums and the creative industries in England. EU funding works in 7 year cycles, and this statistic includes all data from the previous ERDF funding cycle (2007-2013) and as much of the current funding cycle as possible. I have provided the breakdown by region for this period of time. DCMS does not hold similar statistics for ERDF funding awarded in the Devolved Nations. ERDF funding total ERDF2007-13£127,201,5622014-16£63,263,202  ERDF funding by region  East of EnglandEast MidlandsLondonNorth EastNorth WestSouth EastSouth WestWest MidlandsYorkshire & HumbersideERDF 2007-2016 (£)1,549,44015,901,51522,066,28238,960,07337,122,1600.0020,639,55829,888,02259,065,964

Women and Equalities

Sexual Harassment

Sarah Jones: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what steps her Department is taking to review sexual harassment laws to ensure those laws are adequate in tackling unsafe work environments for women.

Victoria Atkins: Legal protection from harassment in the workplace exists through the Equality Act 2010, the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 and the Sexual Offences Act 2003. We believe this legislation provides adequate protection for both men and women in the working environment; however, we will continue to keep the operation of the legislation under review, to ensure that it works as intended.We recognise the risk that unscrupulous employers may try to intimidate vulnerable employees into signing away their legal rights in non-disclosure agreements. However, such agreements cannot be used to prevent an individual from asserting their statutory rights either under the employment Rights Act 1996 or the Equality Act 2010: to the extent that they are so used, they will be unenforceable.The Government has nonetheless committed to look at the structures around non-disclosure agreements and the evidence that is coming forward about how they are being used.

Government Equalities Office: Directors

Chris Ruane: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, pursuant to the Answer of 31 January to Question 124786, on Government Equalities Office: Directors, what the (a) names and (b) dates of departure from their posts were of the most recent non-executive directors in the Government Equalities Office.

Victoria Atkins: The Government Equalities Office (GEO) reports to Amber Rudd, the Home Secretary, and works with Baroness Williams, Minister for Equalities, and Victoria Atkins, Minister for Women. It has not had a board since 2012, when its non-executive directors were Janet Soo-Chung CBE, Judy McKnight CBE and Peter Bungard.